Figure 5.

Foam cell formation assay using macrophage-specific lentiviral vector. (a) RAW264.7 cells were infected and treated with oxLDL (100 μg ml⁻¹) 48 h later. Lipid depositions of Lenti-SP-GFP+oxLDL (a) and Lenti-SP-APN+oxLDL (b) were detected 24 h later by oil red O staining and observed under an optical microscope at × 200 magnification. (b) Absorbance of oil red O was detected by the spectrophotometer at 518 nm and normalized to that obtained in the control group. In Lenti-SP-APN-infected RAW264.7 cells, the foam cell formation was inhibited. (c) APN protein was highly expressed in Lenti-SP-APN-infected RAW264.7 cells in the presence of oxLDL treatment. Data shown are means±s.d.'s. *P<0.05 and ***P<0.001. APN, adiponectin; Lenti-GFP, lentivirus of GFP; Lenti-SP-APN, lentivirus of SP146-C1-APN.