Research Paper Volume 11, Issue 10 pp 3348—3361
circFADS2 protects LPS-treated chondrocytes from apoptosis acting as an interceptor of miR-498/mTOR cross-talking
Figure 7. miR-498 silencing reversed cell viability and apoptosis regulated by circFADS2. LPS-treated chondrocytes were co-transfected with si-circFADS2 and miR-498 inhibitor/miR-NC inhibitor. (A) CCK8 assay showing that transfection with a miR-498 inhibitor reduced cell proliferation of LPS-treated chondrocytes. (B) Soft agar colony formation assay for the LPS-treated chondrocytes co-transfected with si-circFADS2 and miR-498 inhibitor/miR-NC inhibitor, and that of non-transfected LPS-induced cells. The right panel shows the number of colonies formed in each group. (C) Flow cytometry analysis showing the apoptosis levels in the different chondrocyte groups. (D) WB and (E) qPCR analysis showing that miR-498 inhibition upregulated Bcl-2 and decreased the levels of Bax, in LPS-treated chondrocytes. *P < 0.05, vs. LPS group; # P < 0.05, ## P < 0.01 vs. LPS+circFADSi+miR-NCi group.