Oleanolic acid stimulates scratch closure in MDA-MB-231 cells independently of proliferation.

<p>(A) The figure shows micrographs of the extent of closure obtained under control conditions compared to those with OA (10 μM) after 19 h treatment. A representative picture is shown. Scale Bar 200 μm. (B) Cell migration quantification was assessed by determining differences in the central gap area (see <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0172574#sec002" target="_blank">Materials and Methods</a>). Cell migration is represented as variation of the area differences between treatments and control samples for each assay (percentage). (C) Long term effects of OA on proliferation were assessed by counting total cells at the indicated times. The logarithm of the mean number of cells against time is plotted. (D) Cell cycle subpopulations composition was evaluated on cells obtained from long term culture passages. All plots are representative of at least three independent experiments. *p<0.05, **p<0.005, ***p<0.001 and ****p<0.0001.