Figure 4.

The PI3K pathway is involved in endothelin-1 or ET-1–induced IL-6 and TNF-α synthesis. (A–D) C2C12 and G7 cells were pretreated with a PI3K inhibitor (Ly294002) and an Akt inhibitor then incubated with ET-1 for 24 h. IL-6 and TNF-α levels were examined by RT-qPCR and ELISA (E). C2C12 and G7 were incubated with ET-1 for the indicated time intervals, and p85 and Akt phosphorylation were examined using Western blotting. Results are expressed of four independent experiments performed in triplicate. ^*p < 0.05 compared with control; ^#p < 0.05 compared with the ET-1–treated group.