FIG. 4.

Effects of the phthalate mixture on the expression of apoptotic factors. Antral follicles were isolated from mouse ovaries and treated with vehicle (DMSO) or phthalate mixture (1–500 µg/ml) for 96 h. Follicles were collected and subjected to qPCR analyses for the expression of Bax (A), Bcl2 (B), Casp3 (D), and Casp8 (E). Relative fold changes of each gene normalized to Rn18s are shown. Ratio of the gene expression was calculated and is shown for Bax/Bcl2 (C). Graphs represent means ± SEM from 3 separate experiments (n = 9–12 follicles/treatment/experiment). Asterisks (*) indicate significant differences from the control (P < .05). ^ indicates borderline significance compared to control, P = .06 for panel A, P = .09 for (C). M = mixture.