Figure 6.

Nemopilema nomurai jellyfish venom (NnV) abrogates TGF-β-mediated E-cadherin downregulation through NF-κB inactivation. (A) HepG2 cells were pre-treated with curcumin (NF-κB inhibitor, 10 μM) followed by treatment with TGF-β for 48 h. Whole cell lysates were analysed for epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) markers and NF- κB activation by western blotting. (B and C) t-NF-κB, p-NF-κB, E-cadherin, and Snail levels were quantified with ImageJ. (D) HepG2 cells were treated with TGF-β for various periods, and indicated proteins were detected by western blot analysis. (E) HepG2 cells were incubated with NnV for 48 h at different concentrations. The levels of p-IκB, NF-κB, and p-NF-κB were measured by western blotting. (F) HepG2 cells were treated with NnV alone or pre-treated with TGF-β followed by treatment with NnV. p-IκB, NF-κB, and p-NF-κB were assessed by western blotting. (G, H, and I) p-IκB, NF-κB, and p-NF-κB were quantified with ImageJ. Data are presented as the mean ± SD from three fields. *p < 0.01 compared to the control; #p < 0.01 compared to TGF-β group.