Fig. 2: KDM4C depletion suppresses tumorigenesis and enhances radiosensitivity in lung cancer in vitro and in vivo.

a SPC-A1 and H460 cells were transfected with the control or shKDM4C lentivirus, and samples were collected and analyzed by Western blotting using indicated antibodies (n = 3). b SPC-A1 and H460 cells stably expressing control or KDM4C shRNAs were seeded and cultured for 2 weeks. Crystal violet was then used to stain colonies which were counted under a microscope. **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001 (n = 3). c 5 × 10⁶ SPC-A1 stable cells (Sh-Control or Sh-KDM4C) were subcutaneously injected into BALB/c nude mice. The growth curves of the xenograft tumors in the three groups are presented (n = 8 mice for each group). ***P < 0.001. d Tumor weights in three groups were shown (n = 8 mice for each group). ***P < 0.001. e Representative pictures of comet assays performed 4 h after IR exposure of KDM4C-depleted or control cells. ***P < 0.001 (n = 3). Scale bar, 20 μm. f KDM4C-depleted SPC-A1 and H460 cells were irradiated and harvested 4 h later. Upper panel: Representative immunostaining pictures of Rad51 foci. Lower panel: Rad51 foci quantification results. A cell containing 10 or more foci was considered as a foci-positive cell. ***P < 0.001 (n = 3). Scale bar, 10 μm. g KDM4C silencing led to enhanced radiosensitivity. Data are presented as the mean ± SD. SER: sensitization enhancement ratio. **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001 (n = 3). h The growth curves of xenograft tumors for each group are represented. Data are presented as mean ± SEM (n = 8 mice for each group). *** P < 0.001.