Pathological histology
Kidneys were fixed in 4% formalin (Shanghai Reith Biotechnology, Co.,
Ltd., China) and embedded in paraffin. Sections with a thickness of 4 μm
were prepared before staining. Then, the sections were deparaffinized
using xylene and rehydrated in a graded alcohol series (100%, 90%,
80%, and 70%), stained with hematoxylin-eosin staining (H&E, Shanghai
Reith Biotechnology, Co., Ltd.) and periodic acid-Schiff (PAS, Shanghai
Reith Biotechnology, Co., Ltd.) for histological examination and then
hydrated in a graded alcohol series (30% to 100%). The results were
quantified by bright-field light microscopy.