Fig. 2. Altered immune clusters in peripheral and lower esophageal sphincter (LES) in patients with achalasia. (A) Violin plot comparing the proportion of clusters (n = 9) across the individuals. Controls are shown in blue, and achalasia in red. P-values were calculated using t tset or Wilcoxon test. (B, C) Zebra plot show flow cytometry analysis of peripheral neutrophils and eosinophils. (D) Neutrophilic and eosinophilic infiltration of the LES was assessed by immunostaining for myeloperoxidase (MPO) and major basic protein (MBP) in patients and controls (ganglion cells, blue arrows; MPO or MBP positive cells, red arrows) (controls, n = 15; achalasia, n = 20). (E, F) Number of MPO and MBP-labeled neutrophils and eosinophils per high-powered field from LES (controls, n = 10; achalasia, n = 10). NK, natural killer; mDC, classical dendritic cell; pDC, plasmacytoid dendritic cell. *P < 0.05; **P < 0.01.
© J Neurogastroenterol Motil
