Fig. 4

Pirfenidone (PFD) protected human fetal lung fibroblasts (HLFs) from TGF-β1 damage via Wnt/GSK-3β/β-catenin and TGF-β1/Smad2/3 signaling pathways. In this figure, HLFs were divided into control, TGF-β1, PFD + TGF-β1, PFD + TGF-β1 + NC and PFD + TGF-β1 + β-catenin groups. The mRNA and protein levels of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-related proteins (Vimentin, E-cadherin, N-cadherin) in HLFs were determined by (a, b) Western Blot (WB) and (c) quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) assays. The protein levels of factors related to (d-f) Wnt/GSK-3β/β-catenin (p-GSK-3β S9, β-catenin) and (g-j) TGF-β1/Smad2/3 (TGF-β1, TGF-βRΙ, TGF-βRΙΙ, p-Smad2/3) signaling pathways were measured by WB assay. ^**P < 0.01, ^***P < 0.001, vs. control; ^&P < 0.05, ^&&P < 0.01, ^&&&P < 0.001, vs. TGF-β1; ^#P < 0.05, ^##P < 0.01, ^###P < 0.001, vs. PFD + TGF-β1 + NC. N = 3