Fig. 8

MAPK signaling, which is activated in hBMECs upon meningitic E. coli infection, contributes to the neuroinflammatory response. a, b Phosphorylation of p38, JNK, and ERK1/2 in hBMECs upon challenge with PCN033 and RS218 strains. c, d Blocking the three MAPK signaling pathways through specific inhibitors (U0126, a specific ERK1/2 inhibitor; SB202190, a p38 selective inhibitor; and SP600125, a JNK-specific inhibitor) significantly decreased the infection-induced neuroinflammatory response via real-time PCR analysis. P < 0.05 (*) was considered statistically significant; p < 0.01 (**) and p < 0.001 (***) were extremely significant