Fig. 1.

Osteopontin (OPN) induces apoptosis in adult rat ventricular myocytes (ARVMs). ARVMs were treated with OPN (20 nM) and BSA (20 nM) for 24 h (A), or infected with adenoviruses expressing OPN or green fluorescent protein (GFP) for 48 h (B). Apoptosis was measured using TUNEL assay. A, top: TUNEL images of ARVMs. *P < 0.05 vs. control (CTL) or GFP; $P < 0.05 vs. OPN; n = 3–7. Cell lysates and conditioned media (CM) were analyzed by Western using anti-OPN antibodies following treatment with OPN (C) or infection with adenoviruses (D). Recombinant OPN (rOPN) served as a positive control.