Fig 2. S1P₁ mediates hBMVEC survival after exposure to cytokines.

a. The selective S1P₁ agonist, AUY-954 (AUY, 50 nM) added together with TNFα (10 U/ml) and IFNγ (5 U/ml) (T&I), is able to counteract hBMVEC death induced by cytokines. The presence of S1P₁ selective antagonist NIBR-0213 (NIBR, 1 μM) prevents this effect entirely. b. and c. The principal involvement of S1P₁ in the protective role of S1P (50 nM) and pFTY (50 nM) is further confirmed by the lack of their effects when used in combination with the antagonist NIBR (1 μM). d. The specificity of S1P₁ antagonism is confirmed by the lack of any effect when NIBR is used in absence of any S1P receptor agonist. Data are the mean ±S.E.M. of four independent experiments, each run in triplicate, in which three to five fields per well were counted. ** p<0.01 vs T&I, # p< 0.05 vs respective treatment in the absence of antagonist.