Fig. 4

Egr-1 activation assists with meningitic E. coli-induced cytoskeleton fiber breakdown. A Western blot analysis of Egr-1 expression in WT and Egr-1^−/− hBMEC in response to infection. β-actin was used as the loading control. The induction of Egr-1 by meningitic E. coli was completely abolished in hBMEC, accompanied by Egr-1 knockout. B Cytoskeleton staining of WT and Egr-1^−/− hBMEC with or without bacterial infection. Phalloidin-labeled F-actin (green) and DAPI nuclear staining (blue). Scale bar indicates 10 µM. c Western blot analysis of RhoA, Rac1, and Cdc42 activation in WT and Egr-1^−/− hBMEC exposed to meningitic E. coli