Low miR-143/miR-145 Cluster Levels Induce Activin A Overexpression in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinomas, Which Contributes to Poor Prognosis
Fig 7
Activin A induces epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT).
Levels of E-cadherin, N-cadherin and vimentin were analyzed by qPCR. (A) Treatment with activin A decreased the expression of epithelial marker E-cadherin and induced the mesenchymal markers N-cadherin and vimentin in HaCat cells. (B) Follistatin treatment promoted the expression of E-cadherin and blocked the expression of N-cadherin and vimentin in SCC-9 ZsGreen LN-1 cells. (C) Abrogation of activin A induced the expression of E-cadherin, whereas downregulated the production of N-cadherin and vimentin. (D) Representative images of aggregates formed by shControl and shINHBA cells in hanging drop assay. Silencing of activin A induced cell-cell adhesion, as revealed by larger aggregates in shINHBA cultures compared to those in shControl cultures. *p<0.05, **p<0.01, ***p<0.001, ****p<0.0001.