To confirm the involvement of MAPK and NF-κB signaling pathways in HF-induced apoptosis, we pre-treated K562 cells with 10 μM SB203580 (p38 inhibitor) or 10 μM SP600125 (JNK inhibitor) for 1 h before the treatment with 10 μM HF for 48 h. Here, MAPK8 is linked to hydrops fetalis.