Fig. 4.
TAT-Cx43266–283 reduces Sox2 and human nestin expression and tumorigenicity in human GSCs intracranially implanted into mice. (A) Human PKH26-labeled GSCs were intracranially injected together with 100 µM TAT or TAT-Cx43266–283 in NOD/SCID mice. After 7 (B) or 30 (C and D) days, brain sections were analyzed. (B) PKH26 (red), human nestin (hNestin; green), Sox2 (blue), and merged images of the same field. White arrows indicate some PKH26-labeled cells to illustrate the reduction in hNestin and Sox2 expression in these cells after their treatment with TAT-Cx43266–283 for 7 days. Bar: 75 µm. Quantification of hNestin and Sox2 fluorescence intensity. (C and D) Images showing a reduction in PKH26, Stem121 (S121), and hNestin after treatment with TAT-Cx43266–283 for 30 days. Bar: 75 µm. Quantification of S121 and hNestin fluorescence (mean ± SEM). Between 2 and 5 sections per animal and 4 or 5 animals per condition from 3 independent experiments were analyzed (Student’s t-test: *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01).