Figure 3. MTS assay for cell viability.
NPCs were treated in five groups as presented in the figure and then seeded into 96-well plates. All groups were incubated for 24 h in the serum-free medium without phenol red. Cell viability was determined by MTS assay using CellTiter 96® AQueous MTS Reagent Solution (Promega, Madison, WI, USA) according to manufacturer’s instruction. The optical density was measured at 492 nm with a microplate reader (Shimadzu, Kyoto, Japan) and cell viability was normalized as a percentage of control. * p < 0.05, by one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) accompanied by pairwise comparison using SNK-q test. NPCs, nucleus pulposus cells; IL-1β, interleukin-1β; E2, 17β-estradiol; RSV, resveratrol; mean ± SD (standard deviation); n = 6.