Figure 6.

Effects of angiomodulin (AGM) and transforming growth factor‐β1 (TGF‐β1) on expression of fibronectin and α‐smooth muscle actin (α‐SMA) in human fibroblasts in presence or absence of Smad signal inhibitor. (a,b) Human natal dermal fibroblasts (HDFs) were incubated with the indicated concentrations of AGM or TGF‐β1 as a positive control in serum‐free medium for 2 days. Expression of α‐SMA (a) and fibronectin (b; FN) in the cultures were analyzed, as described in Fig. 4. (c) HDFs were pre‐incubated for 1 h with (+) or without (−) 10 μM Smad signal inhibitor SB431542 (Smad inh.) and then treated without (Cont.) or with 5 ng/mL TGF‐β1 or 5 μg/mL AGM. Fibronectin (FN) and α‐SMA expressed in the cultures were analyzed as above. Other experimental conditions are described in Materials and Methods.