Fig. 6

MSCs increase stemness of PCa inducing castration-resistant growth. a Castrated mice with LNCaP tumors (n = 6 per group) injected with MSCs or not through tail vein every 3 days, tumor volume observed and calculated. After 6 weeks, tumors removed for further experiments. b RT-PCR analysis stem marker mRNA expression in tumors. c–e RT-PCR employed to examine stem marker expression levels of PCa cells. f Sphere formation assay of PCa cells after coculture with MSCs for 5 days in AD, then mixed with Matrigel (1:1, v/v), and cultured in 24-well plates for 10 days. g PCa cells, after coculture with MSCs for 5 days, subcutaneously injected into armpit area of nude mice and rate of tumor formation observed at day 14. *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01. AD androgen deprivation, MSC mesenchymal stem cell