Figure 3

NPRA-deficiency impairs tumor engraftment and induces apoptosis of PCa cells. (A) NPRA-deficiency impaired engraftment of TRAMP-C1 cells. Three groups of mice (wild type (WT), heterozygous (Het) and homozygous (NPRA-KO), (n = 5 per group) were injected s. c. in the left and right flanks with 5 × 10⁶ TRAMP-C1 cells per site. Mice were euthanized ten weeks after injection. Tumors were excised and weighed. Mean tumor weights ± SEM are shown. (B-C) NPRA deficiency induced apoptosis of PCa cells. TRAMP-C1 cells were transiently transfected with psiNPRA (si1 and si2) and control plasmid (pU6). Cells were harvested 72 hrs later and whole cell lysates were analysed for NPRA and PARP by western blotting. (C) TRAMP-C1 cells were transfected with pU6 or psi2 plasmids. Forty-eight hours after transfection, apoptosis was monitored by TUNEL assay.