Consistent with clinical findings (Supplementary Fig. 1a), IHC showed significantly higher expression of IL-1β (Supplementary Fig. 4a, g) in the Td-Inj and Td-Sut groups compared with the sham group in all time points (P < 0.05), suggesting that IL-1β may serve as a critical inflammatory mediator in tendinopathy. This evidence concerns the gene IL1B and disease of the tendon.