Figure 5.
Effect of butyrate on the mitochondrial bcl rheostat. Western blot experiments of whole cell lysates showed that unstimulated Caco-2 cells expressed high levels of antiapoptotic bcl-xL and lower bcl-2, as well as high levels of the proapoptotics bid and bax. Mitochondrial expression of bak, which under unstimulated conditions was rather low, was markedly enhanced after stimulation with butyrate. No effect was seen on bid or bax levels. On the other hand, bcl-xL expression was markedly decreased by butyrate, even at concentrations as low as 1 mM. One of three representative experiments is shown for each blot.