Figure 6.

Blockade of P2 receptors affects the proliferation but not differentiation of neural progenitors. A, Optical density measurements obtained for the MTT assay indicate that the proliferation rate of floating WT but not of Cx43-null neurospheres was greatly reduced after 3 d of exposure to 100 μm suramin or MRS-2179 (MRS) (p < 0.001; ANOVA; n = 6 replicas). B, Western blot (inset) showing the expression of nestin and GFAP in WT neural progenitors untreated and treated for 3 d with P2R antagonists. The ratio of nestin to GFAP expression was not affected by 3 d of treatment with the P2R antagonists (p > 0.05; ANOVA; n = 3 experiments).