Figure 3. High glucose mediated the migration and invasiveness of TSCC through PKM2 pathway.

(A) The protein levels of PKM2, SOD2, Vimentin, Slug and pERK1/2 were decreased in UM1 cells after knockdown of PKM2 in TSCC cells cultured with 16.7 mM glucose, but the protein level of E-cadherin was decreased. PKM2 knockdown inhibited the migration (B) and invasion (C) abilities, cell proliferation (D), and the SOD2 activity (E) and H₂O₂ production (F) in UM1 cells cultured with 16.7 mM glucose. ^*P<0.05 compared with UM1 cells cultured with 16.7mM glucose and transfected with control siRNA.