Figure 2. Neovascularization in the cornea at 14 days post-injury. Mice were subjected to corneal alkali injury with limbal and corneal epithelial cell debridement and treated daily with dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO, Veh) or 2 mg/kg withaferin A (WFA) for 14 days. A-B: Representative images of anterior segment showing phenotypic representation of corneal neovascularization with and without drug treatment. An extensive network of new blood vessels extends from the limbus (LB, asterisk) into the central cornea (CC) in Veh sample. C-D: Whole mount staining of corneas labeled with anti-CD31-fluorescent antibody (green) show an extensive network of new blood vessels in vehicle (Veh) sample with potent inhibition in sample treated with WFA (D). E: Quantification of neovascularization from each group of mice (n=14) was performed as previously described [20]. Error bars represent standard deviation (SD); * p<0.05 by the Mann–Whitney U test.