FIG. 4.

In vivo cross-talk between the TGFβ and BMP signaling pathways in dural tissue spanning calvarial defects. (A) Indirect immunofluorescence for pSmad2/3 performed on coronal sections through dura tissue spanning the calvarial defect shows effective suppression of TGFβ signaling in vivo at 24 and 72 h after calvarial defect surgery. (B) Quantification of the percentage pSmad2/3 positive nuclei in dura tissue spanning the calvarial defect showing a significant reduction of pSmad2/3 positive nuclei at both 24 and 72 h upon treatment with SB431542. (C) Indirect immunofluorescence for pSmad1/5, performed on coronal sections through dura spanning the calvarial defect, indicates a more sustained BMP response in the SB431542 treatment group. By 72 h, only the group treated with SB431542 had significantly elevated pSmad1/5. (D) Quantification of the percentage pSmad1/5 positive nuclei in dura spanning the calvarial defect showing a persistent increase of pSmad1/5 positive nuclei in SB431542-treated cells, and, therefore, activation of BMP signaling at both 24 and 72 h in the presence of SB431542. Representative blots of three independent experiments. *p ≤ 0.05. Color images available online at www.liebertpub.com/tea