Figure 8. Effects of celecoxib on EMT in LEC

Following sham cataract surgery, canine lens capsules treated with 10 μM celecoxib for 2 weeks had some remaining LEC with altered morphology and adhesion (A and B). Magnification 40X. "a" indicates the anterior capsule and "p" indicates the posterior capsule. Immunohistochemical staining revealed that the remaining LEC expressed a moderate amount of COX-2, did not express PCNA, showed decreased α-SMA immunostaining, and were strongly immunoreactive for cleaved caspase-3 compared to untreated capsules (C-F, respectively). Bars, 20 μm. Western blot analysis of the LEC treated with 10 μM celecoxib following sham cataract surgery (G). COX-2 protein was decreased in celecoxib-treated capsules compared to vehicle-treated capsules.