Fig. 5.

CARDS toxin induced RAW264.7 macrophages to secrete TNF-α. RAW264.7 macrophages were co-cultured with different concentrations of CARDS toxin (0, 5, and 50 μg/mL) for 48 h. a TNF-α level secreted from RAW264.7 cells was determined by ELISA. b TNF-α mRNA level in RAW264.7 cells was determined by real-time PCR. NS, no significance; ^**p < 0.01, ^***p < 0.001