Fig. 2

Ceramide-mediated MMP-9 expression was inhibited by JAK2 and STAT3 inhibitors. (a and b) BEAS-2B cells seeded on 96-well plates were treated with AG490 (0, 20, 10, 5, or 2.5 μM) (a) and Stattic (0, 2, 1, 0.5, or 0.25 μM) (b) for 24 h. Cell viability was assessed using the CCK8 assay and expressed as percentage of controls cultured with DMSO. ^**P < 0.01 vs controls that were cultured with DMSO. (c and d) BEAS-2B cells were pretreated with AG490 (0, 10, 5 or 2.5 μM) for 2 h followed by adding 10 μΜ of C6-ceramide for 24 h. MMP-9 levels were determined by RT-qPCR (c) and ELISA (d). (e and f) BEAS-2B cells were pretreated with Stattic (0, 1, 0.5 or 0.25 μM) for 2 h followed by adding 10 μΜ of C6-ceramide for 24 h. MMP-9 levels were determined by RT-qPCR (e) and ELISA (f). n = 3 per group. ^##P < 0.01 vs respective control; ^∗P < 0.05, ^∗∗P < 0.01 vs the C6-ceramide-stimulated group