Figure 3.

Rapamycin decreases PTSC senescence by upregulating autophagy. (a) Western blot analysis of p62, LC3-II/LC3-I, p-S6, S6, p53, and p21 shows that bleomycin induces LC3I, p62, p53, and p21; however, they are reduced by rapamycin. (b) Relative density of p62 bands. p62, whose level is inversely correlated with autophagy activity, is higher with bleomycin treatment, but rapamycin decreases the p62 expression. (c) LC3 II/LC3 I ratio, an indicator of autophagy activity, is significantly decreased in the bleomycin treated PTSCs, but increased after rapamycin treatment. Each data point represents at least three independent experiments. ^∗p < 0.05, compared to the bleomycin treatment group. Cont: control; Bleo: bleomycin; Rapa: rapamycin.