Fig. 4

BAFF-R Fc chimera inhibits BAFF-mediated proliferation of human mesangial cells in vitro. Human mesangial cells were sequentially subjected to serum starvation for 4–6 h, BAFF-R Fc chimera (500 ng/mL) incubation for 30 min, and finally BAFF treatment (20 ng/mL) in 2 % serum-medium for 48 h (a, b) or 0.5 % serum-medium for 10 min (c). a The number of living cells was counted manually. b The proliferation of cells is indicated by a decline in DNA-incorporated CFSE fluorescence. c Protein from treated cells was analyzed for expression of target proteins by western blot