Figure 3

Down-modulation of BST-2 in cancer cells reduces mammary cancer metastases. (A) Representative images of tumor cells tracked in vivo with IVIS imaging at different time points. Images show higher luciferase bioluminescence in 4T1 shControl-injected mice compared to sh413-injected mice. (B) Representative luciferase bioluminescence accompanied with abdominal and gastrointestinal tract (GI tract) gross images of uninjected (upper panel), shControl-implanted (middle panel), and sh413-implanted mice (lower panel). Arrow heads point to mammary tumors (middle column) and intestinal/mesenteric tumors (right column). Scale bar = 5 mm. (C) Number of secondary tumors in intestine/mesentery plotted as average of all mice. (D) Representative intestine/mesentery histology images from 4T1 shControl and sh413-injected mice confirming increased mesenteric tumors (arrows) in shControl mice compared to sh413-injected mice. A mesenteric lymph node is demarcated by an asterisk (not to be confused with a tumor mass). (E) Representative gross liver images of 4T1 shControl and sh413-injected mice. Arrows are pointing to tumors. (F) Representative gross images of lungs showing visible pulmonary nodules (arrows) in shControl-implanted mice. (G) Percent incidence of liver and lung metastases. (H) Lung histology from shControl (upper left) and sh413 (upper right) injected mice. Lung from the 4T1 shControl mice had multiple large tumors (tumors demonstrated by asterisk) and marked infiltration of the alveolar septa and alveolar spaces by neutrophils (yellow arrows). Boxed regions are shown at higher magnification (40X) for shControl (lower left) and sh413 (lower right). Error bars represent standard deviations and significance was taken at P <0.01^**.