Fig. 4.

Blocked ROCK-1 expression reduced cardiomyocyte apoptosis. (A) A specific siRNA knocked down ROCK-1 expression (Top Left). ROCK-1 siRNA inhibited caspase-3 activation induced by ceramide (Upper Right). (B) Fluorescent staining showed that pretreatment with the siRNA protected cardiomyocytes from ceramide-induced apoptosis. (C) A representative ROCK-1^−/− mouse myocardium image showed a TUNEL-positive cardiac myocyte revealed by TUNEL green staining after 1 week of aortic banding. (D) Comparison of TUNEL-positive cardiac myocytes (per 10⁵ nuclei) in left ventricle myocardium from WT and ROCK-1^−/− mice after 1 week of aortic banding or surgical sham. n = 5 mice for each group. NS, nonspecific; casp3, caspase-3. Red, phalloidin staining for F-actin; blue, DAPI nucleus staining.