FIG. 4.

Effect of inhibitors of NF-κB or MAPK signaling on TNF-α and leptin-induced upregulation of EL in primary placental ECs. Primary placental ECs were incubated with TNF-α (20 ng/mL), leptin (1 μg/mL), or both for 24 h in the presence or absence of NF-κB (BAY, 10 μmol/L) or MAPK (UO126, 10 μmol/L) signaling inhibitors. Neither BAY nor UO126 showed significant effects on leptin-induced upregulation of EL. In ECs treated with TNF-α, BAY significantly reduced expression of EL to 15.9% (*P < 0.001) compared with expression level in cells treated with TNF-α alone. DMSO was used as a solvent control for signaling inhibitors and showed no significant effects compared with untreated cells. Data are presented as mean ± SEM from experiments with five different cell preparations, each performed in triplicate.