We also found that the level of ɑ-SMA (another important marker of lung fibrosis), as determined by immunohistochemical staining (Fig. 3c), qPCR (Fig. 3f), and western blotting (Fig. 3g) analyses, increased in the lung tissue of the BLM group compared to the control group. This evidence concerns the gene SMN1 and pulmonary fibrosis.