Skip to main content
. 2012 May 15;7(5):e37374. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0037374

Figure 8. Cx43 and N-cadherin knockdown increases Rac1 and RhoA GTPase activity in fibroblasts.

Figure 8

(A) Rho GTPase (GTP) activities in wounded fibroblasts were measured by pull-down assays using the PBD domain of PAK (Rac1 and Cdc42), or the RBD domain of Rhotekin (RhoA), followed by immunoblotting with the respective antibodies. Additionally, Rac1, Cdc42 and RhoA from total lysates were used as loading controls. (B) Graphs show active Rac1 and RhoA GTPase activity (GTP levels/total levels; mean ± SEM, *P<0.05); n = 3 independent experiments. Representative images of leading edge Cx43shRNA and p.Sup transduced cells showing (C) Rac1, and (D) RhoA GTPase activities, 3 h after wounding of confluent monolayers. Scale bar = 10 µm. Arrows indicate the direction of migration. (E) FRET efficiency analysis show a two-fold increase in Rac1 and RhoA activities in Cx43shRNA vs. p.Sup-transduced cells, while no differences were observed for Cdc42. Data is representative of n = 3 experiments per condition; *p<0.05.