FIG 6.

Actin pedestal formation by EPEC induces the expression of genes involved in inflammation and apoptosis. (A) Expression levels of proinflammatory and/or apoptotic genes differentially expressed in cells infected with pedestal-forming strains compared to cells infected with the espFu mutant. The values (log₂FC) shown were obtained from the RNA-Seq data set. (B) Validation of RNA-Seq data by qRT-PCR assay, showing the expression levels of CXCL1, IL-6, IL-8, and NFKBIA genes. Data were normalized to B2M (endogenous control) and presented as means ± the SD from four biological replicates. Statistical significance was determined by using one-way ANOVA, followed by a post hoc Tukey test. *, P < 0.05; **, P < 0.01; ***, P < 0.001; ****, P < 0.0001.