Fig. 4

Pharmacological inhibition of FAK, MAPKK, and actin polymerization completely abrogated hMSC morphological changes. a The FAK pathway was among the top upregulated pathways in hMSCs following co-culture with MCF7 or BT-20 cancer cells. Matched entities are highlighted on the chart. Morphological changes in hMSCs following: disruption of the hMSC niche structure through pharmacological inhibition of c FAK (5 μM, PF-573228; Sigma), d MAPKK (5 μM, PD98059; Sigma) or e actin polymerization (1 μM, cytochalasin D; Sigma) compared with dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO)-treated controls. b. DAPI was used to stain nuclei. All inhibitors were added on day 0 except for MAKK inhibitor which was added on day 0, and then co-cultures were supplemented with fresh inhibitor on day 2