Figure 5.

ANGPTL4 meditates PPARγ agonist-induced migration and invasion of trophoblast cells and outgrowth of placental explants. (a–e) HTR8/SVneo cells transfected with si-Con or si-ANGPTL4 were stimulated with 1 μM rosiglitazone. Control cells were treated with 1 μM rosiglitazone or 100 nM rhANGPTL4. Transwell invasion and wound-healing assays were performed to assess the invasive and migratory abilities of these cells. The expression of MMP-2, MMP-9, TIMP-1 and TIMP-2 was tested via western blot analysis. The data are shown as the means±S.E.M. *P<0.05, **P<0.01 and ***P<0.001 versus control or si-Con. (f–h) Placental explants transfected with si-Con or si-ANGPTL4 were treated with 1 μM rosiglitazone. Control explants were stimulated with 1 μM rosiglitazone or 100 nM rhANGPTL4. Placental explant outgrowth was measured to further assess extravillous cytotrophoblast (EVT) migration and invasion. Representative images of placental explants are shown. The expression of MMP-9 and MMP-2 was measured via gelatin zymography, and the expression of TIMP-1 and TIMP-2 was determined by western blot analysis. The data are shown as the means±S.E.M. **P<0.01, ***P<0.001 compared with control or si-Con. (i) The expression of PPARγ, ANGPTL4, MMP-2 and MMP-9 in placental tissues was determined by IHC in PE subjects (n=30) and normal controls (n=30). Representative images were captured at × 200 magnification