The TGF-β1 Signaling Pathway as an Attractive Target in the Fibrosis Pathogenesis of Sjögren’s Syndrome

Figure 4

Morphological changes in healthy SGEC induced by TGF-β1 treatment. SGEC derived from SG biopsies of healthy donors were incubated with 10 ng/ml of TGF-β1 for 24–72 h. (a) Untreated SGEC show a clear pebble-like shape and cell-cell adhesion. TGF-β1-treated cells (b, c, d) show a decrease in cell-cell contacts and adopt a more elongated morphological shape. Healthy SGEC stimulation with TGF-β1 (10 ng/ml) in the presence of SB-4315425 (10 μM) for 48 h is reported in the panel (e). Changes in cell morphology were assessed under phase-contrast light microscopy (original magnification, ×20). .

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