Propofol induces apoptosis and increases gemcitabine sensitivity in pancreatic cancer cells in vitro by inhibition of nuclear factor-κB activity

Figure 4 Evaluation of apoptosis by terminal transferase dUTP nick-end labeling and DNA ladder assays in pancreatic cancer MIA-PaCa-2 cells after propofol pretreatment. A: Sensitization of pancreatic tumor MIA-PaCa-2 cells to propofol- and/or gemcitabine-induced apoptosis measured by terminal transferase dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL) assay after 24 h of pretreatment with propofol (50 μmol/mL), gemcitabine (0-100 μmol/L), or propofol and gemcitabine combined for 72 h. Increased apoptosis was evident in the combination treatment group relative to individual treatment groups. ^aP < 0.05 vs propofol and gemcitabine combined group; B: Representative TUNEL image of MIA-PaCa-2 cells pretreated with propofol (50 μmol/mL) for 24 h followed by coincubation with gemcitabine (50 μmol/L) for 72 h; C: Representative DNA ladder image of MIA-PaCa-2 cells pretreated with propofol (50 μmol/mL) for 24 h followed by coincubation with gemcitabine (50 μmol/L) for 72 h.