Figure 7.

Effect of Ca²⁺-free medium on the accumulation of lipid droplets (A), their area (B) and free glycerol (C). (A) Lipid droplets in the white adipocytes grown with the addition of 5 nM (Control) and 20 nM insulin from the first day of cultivation and the effect on them 24 h after 60 min of incubation with Ca²⁺-free medium (+Ca²⁺-free and Ins 20 nM + Ca²⁺-free). The accumulation of lipid droplets in adipocytes with Cx43-KD and in them after Ca²⁺-free medium application is designated Cx43-KD and Cx43-KD + Ca²⁺-free, respectively. The cells are stained with the Oil Red probe. (B) The area of lipid droplets in white adipocytes relative to the area of the cells themselves. The area of adipocytes is taken as 100%. Mean values ± SE are presented. For each column, 150 white adipocytes were analyzed. (C) Concentration of free glycerol in the culture of white adipocytes in the control, after 24 h of incubation with 100 μM Gap26, a blocker Cx43, and 24 h after 60 min of incubation with the Ca²⁺-free medium against the background of Gap26 and cells with Cx43-KD. A 200 µg white fat cell lysate was used for measurement. The differences between the experimental groups are marked with asterisks: * p < 0.05 and *** p < 0.001, n/s—no significant difference.