Figure 7
Alpha B crystallin protects RPE-MC cells from apoptosis. (a) Viability assay showing that αB-crystallin knockdown augmented the rotenone-induced ARPE-19 cell death. The transfection mixture was added to each well and incubated for 4 h. Then 2 ml of growth medium was added, and the cells were incubated for an additional 20 h. After the siRNA transfection medium was removed, each well was washed in phosphate-buffered saline solution. The cells were treated with various concentrations of rotenone for 48 h. **P<0.01. The values are expressed as the mean±S.D. (b) TUNEL assay showing that αB-crystallin knockdown induced apoptosis in the RPE cells treated with autophagy inhibitors. The values are expressed as the mean±S.D. **P<0.01. (c) Flow cytometry analysis demonstrating that αB-crystallin knockdown resulted in a markedly increased accumulation of annexin V-positive cells. Representative data are presented. See Figure 2 for other definitions
