Fig. 4

Delayed ATII wound repair and reduced cell proliferation and migration after KCa3.1 silencing in the presence of fibronectin coating. ATII cells were transfected with negative control siRNA (siRNA control) or siRNAs directed against KCa3.1 (siKCa3.1) and then seeded in the absence or presence of fibronectin coating. KCa3.1 silencing was verified by PCR (a, n = 7). A representative agarose gel is presented on the left. (b) Wound-healing rates (in μm²/h) were measured at 24 h after injury among cells transfected with control or KCa3.1 siRNAs in the absence of coating (left) and in the presence of fibronectin matrix (right) (n = 7). The number of ATII cells was counted at day 3 of culture after transfection with control or KCa3.1 siRNAs (n = 14, c). The number of migrating ATII cells, transfected 3 days before with control or KCa3.1 siRNAs, was measured in a Boyden type chamber over an 18-h period in the absence (no coating) or presence of fibronectin (n = 6, d). *p < 0.05