Fig. 4

Systemic inflammatory response induced by diarrhea in piglets. A Representative H&E staining of colon of piglets. Scale bar = 100 μm. B Colonic crypt depth in the two groups. The levels of TNF-α in C serum and D colon. The levels of IL-8 in E serum and F colon. The levels of IL-6 in G serum and H colon. I Correlation coefficients between mucus layer, inflammatory response, and epithelial barrier. Correlation coefficients >0.5 or ≤0.5, *P<0.05, **P<0.01. Firebrick and navy colors denote positive and negative correlations, respectively. Color intensity is proportional to Spearman’s rank correlation values