Figure 2.

Effects of HMGB1 on the expression of NLRP3 inflammasome in VSMCs. (A,B) VSMCs were treated with HMGB1 (100 ng/ml) for 0–24 h, and also treated with HMGB1 (0–500 ng/ml) for 12 h. The mRNA levels of NLRP3 were determined by RT-PCR using GAPDH as a control. (C–E) VSMCs were treated with HMGB1 (100 ng/ml) for 0–48 h. The protein levels NLRP3, ASC, and Caspase-1 were determined by Western blot using β-actin as an internal control. Data are expressed as means ± SEMs of duplicates pooled from 4 independent experiments. ^*P < 0.05 and ^**P < 0.01 vs. control (untreated cells).