Fig. 3

Blockade of N-cadherin cleavage decreased PMA-mediated cell invasion and MMP-9 level. a γI treatment decreased PMA-induced cell invasion. NPC cells were treated with γI in the inner well of the Boyden chamber, and PMA (100 nM) plus γI was introduced into the outer well for 24 h. Cells that invaded the lower surface of the filter were fixed, stained and photographed. Representative images and statistical plots of the invasion assay are shown. The relative cell invasion in the γI-plus-PMA–treated group was compared to PMA treatment alone. b γI treatment decreased the PMA-mediatedMMP-9 expression. NPC cells were pre-treated with γI (5 μM), then exposed to PMA for 24 h. Cell lysates underwent immunoblotting with the indicated antibodies. The relative MMP-9 expression was compared with the control group (PMA-untreated cells); N = 3, ^*P<0.05