Research Paper Volume 12, Issue 3 pp 2440—2452
HO-1 induced autophagy protects against IL-1 β-mediated apoptosis in human nucleus pulposus cells by inhibiting NF-κB
Figure 3. HO-1 overexpression suppresses apoptosis induced by IL-1β in the human NPCs. (A) Western blot shows the expressions of P62 and LC3-II/I protein levels in NPCs, which were transfected with Ad-HO-1 for 48 h and then stimulated with IL-1β (10ng/mL) plus 1% FBS for 24 h. Note: The data represents mean ± SD of three experiments; ****p<0.0001, ***p<0.001 and **p<0.01. (B) Immunofluorescence assay shows formation of autophagosomes in HO-1 overexpressing NPCs stimulated with IL-1β (10ng/mL) plus 1% FBS for 24 h. (C) Flow cytometry shows percentage apoptosis of HO-1 overexpressing NPCs after treatment with IL-1β (10ng/mL) plus 1% FBS for 24 h. Note: The data represents mean ± SD of three experiments; ****p<0.0001 and ***p<0.001.