Fig. 13

Pretreatment of GRGDSP peptides inhibited Nano-CuO-induced migration of MRC-5 fibroblasts in the triple co-culture system. BEAS-2B and U937* cells were seeded at the ratio of 1:1 (a and c) or 9:1 (b and d) (BEAS-2B:U937*) in the inserts and MRC-5 fibroblasts were seeded in the lower chambers of Transwell^® units. MRC-5 fibroblasts were pretreated with 200 µg/mL of GRGDSP peptides, then BEAS-2B and U937* cells were exposed to 1 µg/mL of Nano-CuO for 12 h. After exposure, the inserts were taken out and the MRC-5 fibroblasts were incubated for another 36 h. Migration of MRC-5 cells was detected by wound healing assay. a and b were representative images. c and d were the average closure area from three independent experiments. Scale bars in a and b represent 200 µm. Data represent mean ± SE (n = 3). * Significant difference as compared to the control group, p < 0.05; # Significant difference as compared to the Nano-CuO-treated alone group, p < 0.05