Fig. 7

Correlations of miR-550a-3-5p, YAP, CCL2 and M2 macrophages in nude mice xenografts and clinical specimens. a Representative images of active YAP, CCL2, and CD163+ M2 macrophages using IHC staining in miR-550a-3-5p-overexpressed UPCI:SCC090 cells-derived nude mice xenografts with quantitative analysis on the right. Scale bars, 50 μm. b mRNA levels of YAP, CCL2, and CD163 by qRT-PCR. c Levels of active YAP, CCL2, and CD163+ M2 macrophages in representative HPV-positive OSCC patients were shown using IHC staining. Patient 1 had a relatively low expression of miR-550a-3-5p, whereas patient 2 had a relatively high expression of miR-550a-3-5p. Scale bars, 50 μm. d Scatterplot depicted a significant inverse correlation between miR-550a-3-5p and YAP, and significant positive correlations between YAP and CCL2, and CCL2 and CD163+ M2 macrophages in cancerous tissues. e Proposed model illustrated the role of E6-miR-550a-3-5p-YAP-CCL2-M2 macrophages in regulation of HPV-positive OSCC progression. Quantitative analysis based on triplicate experiments. Results were presented as means ± SD. *P<0.05, **P<0.01, ***P<0.001