Fig. 5.

Sucralose regulates VEGF-induced angiogenesis in the retinal endothelium through suppressing Akt activity. Panel a and b: RMVEC were exposed to sucralose (0.1 mM) in the presence and absence of VEGF (100 ng/ml). VEGFR2 cell surface expression (panel a) and Akt phosphorylation (panel b) were measured using whole-cell ELISA and Western blotting respectively. A representative blot is shown. Panel c–e: RMVEC were exposed to the Akt activator, SC79 (10 μM) or vehicle (ethanol), followed by treatment with sucralose (0.1 mM) in the presence and absence of VEGF (100 ng/ml). Changes in retinal endothelial cell: adhesion (panel c), migration (panel d) and tube formation (panel e) were measured following exposure to sucralose (0.1 mM) in the presence (closed bars) and absence (open bars) of VEGF (100 ng/ml). n = 5. Data is expressed as mean ± S.E.M. *p < 0.05 versus vehicle for VEGF, #p < 0.05 versus vehicle for SC79