Fig. 2. PTEN overexpression downregulates the PI3K/mTOR pathway and induces apoptosis in 661W cone cells in vitro.

a, b 661W cone cells expressed red/green cone opsins (a, green) and blue cone opsin (b, green). Nuclei were counterstained with the nuclear dye DAPI (blue). Scale bar: 20μm. c Western blotting analysis and densitometry of the major downstream targets of the PI3K/mTOR pathway in 661W cone cells after PTEN overexpression. Data are the mean±SD (n = 4). PTEN overexpression resulted in downregulation of p-Akt and p-mTOR. *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01. d Quantification of TUNEL-positive 661W cells after PTEN overexpression. Results are expressed as the ratio of TUNEL-positive cells to DAPI-stained nuclei. Values represent the mean±SD (n = 5). ***p < 0.0001