Fig. 1
Cytokine responses after combined exposure to DEP and α-quartz. HBEC3-KT cells were exposed for 24 h to 25–50 μg/mL (2.6–5.3 μg/cm2) DEPB0 (A), DEPB7 (B) and DEPB20 (C), and 25–100 μg/mL (2.6–10.5 μg/cm2) α-quartz, alone or in combination. The release of CXCL8 (i) and IL-1β (ii) in the cell culture supernatants was measured using ELISA. Results are presented as boxplots of 6 independent experiments (Box: 25th–75th percentile, whiskers: minimum and maximum values, line: median, +: mean). Statistically significant differences were determined using two-way repeated measures ANOVA followed by Dunnett’s and Tukey post-tests. All values were log-transformed prior to statistical analysis to satisfy model assumptions. *Statistically significant difference from the respective control at 0 μg/mL α-quartz. #Statistically significant difference between exposure groups