Fig. 1

Correlation between myocardin-related transcription factor (MRTF)-A activity and acinar morphogenesis. MCF10A cells were grown on a solidified layer of matrigel, overlayed with medium containing 2% matrigel and the indicated amount of horse serum. a Phalloidin (red) and lamininV (green) staining at day 14 of acinar morphogenesis of MCF10A cells. Confocal images of representative mid plane sections. Nuclei are stained in blue. b, c MRTF/serum response factor (SRF) luciferase reporter activity. b MCF10A cells were transiently transfected under serum starved conditions, treated after 24 h, as indicated, and analyzed for MRTF/SRF-dependent promoter activity 7 h later. c Kinetics of MRTF/SRF reporter activity during 3D morphogenesis of stably transfected MCF10A cells, normalized to the amount of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) protein. d Quantitative real-time PCR of integrin α5 mRNA expression during 3D-morphogenesis. Error bars SEM (n = 3): *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01 (Student’s t test). e MRTF-A and DNA staining at days 4, 5 and 14 of acinar morphogenesis. Scale bar 50 μm