Dexmedetomidine enhances anastomotic healing partly via the Wnt/β-catenin pathway in a rat model of colon surgery

Figure 7 Effects of dexmedetomidine on the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway in IEC-6 cells. A: Western blotting for the protein expression of β-catenin and glycogen synthase kinase-3 beta in IEC-6 cells treated with lipopolysaccharide and dexmedetomidine. Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase was used as the loading control; B: Immunofluorescence staining of β-catenin in IEC-6 cells (original magnification: 600 ×; scale bar: 50 μm). Data are presented as mean ± SD. ^aP < 0.01. ^bP < 0.001. 4’,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) (blue) was used to stain cell nuclei, while β-catenin (yellow) was used to visualize its subcellular localization. Merged images combine DAPI and β-catenin staining. Dexmedetomidine (DEX)-low = 2.4 μM DEX; DEX-high = 4.8 μM DEX. Control group: IEC-6 cells maintained in standard culture medium; LPS group: IEC-6 cells treated with 5 μg/mL lipopolysaccharide for 72 hours; LPS + DEX-L group: IEC-6 cells pretreated with 2.4 μM dexmedetomidine for 24 hours followed by treatment with 5 μg/mL lipopolysaccharide for 72 hours; LPS + DEX-H group: IEC-6 cells pretreated with 4.8 μM dexmedetomidine for 24 hours followed by 5 μg/mL lipopolysaccharide for 72 hours; LPS: Lipopolysaccharide; DEX: Dexmedetomidine; L: Low; H: High; GAPDH: Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase; GSK-3β: Glycogen synthase kinase-3 beta.