Figure 1. Importin 13 (IPO13) expression was increased in the epithelium of the pterygium. A-F demonstrates representative images of immunohistochemical staining of IPO13 in the normal conjunctiva (A, B), primary pterygium (C, D) and recurrent pterygium (E, F); A, C, E demonstrate representative images of H&E staining indicating the nuclei in normal conjunctiva and pterygium respectively. It was shown that the expression of IPO13 in the basal layer of epithelium cells was apparently increased (D, F; as arrows indicated), compared to the normal conjunctiva (B). G and H demonstrate representative images and statistical analysis of western blotting results of IPO13 in the normal conjunctiva, primary pterygium and recurrent pterygium. The IPO13 protein level was statistically significantly increased in the pterygium and recurrent pterygium, compared to the normal conjunctiva. Data are represented as mean±SEM, n=3, ***: p<0.001 versus the conjunctiva. Scale bar: 100 μm.