Fig. 3.

Effect of pre- versus post-conditioning with HCA. Pre-conditioning with HCA modestly decreased NF-κB activation (a) but did not alter the effect of high stretch on IL-8 production (b), LDH leakage (c), or cell survival (d). In contrast, exposure of the epithelial layers to HCA post-commencement of cell stretch was as effective as exposure to HCA prior to and post-commencement of cyclic stretch. Note: *P < 0.05 versus normocapnia; ^† P < 0.05 versus HCA-pre-conditioning. Abbreviations: Sham unstretched cells under normocapnia, Normo high cyclical stretch with normocapnia, HCA-pre hypercapnia exposure prior to cell stretch, HCA-post hypercapnia exposure commenced after start of cell stretch, HCA-combined hypercapnia exposure both prior to and during cell stretch high cyclical stretch with hypercapnia