Fig. 8

Knockdown of CAV2 inhibited OSCC progression in vivo. (A) Xenograft tumors of SCC25 cells with knockdown (KD: shRNA targeting CAV2, labeled with GFP for green fluorescence tracking) or negative control (NC: scrambled control shRNA, labeled with GFP for green fluorescence tracking) groups (n = 5 per group). (B) Tumor growth curves for SCC25 NC cells and SCC25 KD cells subcutaneously transplanted into nude mice. (C) Tumor volumes of NC and KD groups. (D) Tumor weight of NC and KD groups. (E) Representative HE images of tumors in NC and KD groups. Scale bars = 50 μm. (F) Representative Oil Red O staining images of tumors in NC and KD groups. Scale bars = 50 μm. Quantitative analysis of Oil Red O staining area was performed using Image-Pro Plus (IPP) software. (G) Representative IHC images of Ki67, CAS9, CAS3, PLIN3, HSL, and CPT1A in NC and KD groups in xenograft tumors. (H) Mean IOD analysis of Ki67, CAS9, CAS3, PLIN3, HSL, and CPT1A in NC and KD groups in xenograft tumors. Scale bars = 50 μm. *P<0.05, **P<0.01, ***P<0.001, ns = no significance. Normally distributed variables were presented as mean ± SD (n≥3), while non-normally distributed data were presented as median ± IQR and labeled by ‘#’. Significance was determined by the Student’s t-test (A-C, F, G, and H), Mann-Whitney U (D). KD: knockdown; NC: negative control; HE: hematoxylin and eosin; OSCC: oral squamous cell carcinoma; CAV2: CAVEOLIN2; KD: shRNA targeting CAV2, labeled with GFP for green fluorescence tracking; NC: scrambled control shRNA, labeled with GFP for green fluorescence tracking; IF: immunofluorescence staining; DAPI: 4’,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole; IHC: immunohistochemical staining; CAS9: Caspase9; CAS3: Caspase3 PLIN3: Perilipin3; HSL: Hormone-sensitive lipase; CPT1A: Carnitine O-palmitoyltransferase 1 A; IOD: integrated optical density; IQR: interquartile range