ELN and renal fibrosis: Masson’s trichrome staining (Fig. 3a (a–d)) as well as elastin-van Gieson (EVG) staining (Fig. 3a (e–h)) demonstrated the deposition of extracellular matrix in the UUO kidneys at 6 days (Fig. 3a (c, g)) or at 10 days (Fig. 3a (d, h)) after operation, but not in the normal kidneys (Fig. 3a (a, e)) or contralateral kidneys (Fig. 3a (b, f)), demonstrating the establishment of renal fibrosis in this rat UUO model.