FIGURE 5.

ALK5 activity but not the activation of p38 MAPK and Akt was required for TGF-β1-stimulated MYH9 induction. MRC-5 cells were co-treated with/without 2.5 ng/ml of TGF-β1, 10 μM of SB43152 (ALK5 inhibitor), 10 μM of perifosine (AKT inhibitor), and 0.5 μM of SB203580 (p38 MAPK inhibitor) for 48 h. The expression levels of MYH9 protein in different treatment groups were measured by Western blot analysis (n = 3, control group vs. TGF-β1 group: *p < 0.05; TGF-β1 group vs. ALK5 inhibitor group: ^# p < 0.05; TGF-β1 group vs. p38 MAPK or Akt inhibitor group: NS).