Fig. 3

MK5 promoted CRC cells invasion and migration in vitro and vivo. a Immunoblotting of MK5 expression in 4 pairs of human CRC tissues (T) and adjacent non-tumor tissues (N). b Expression of MK5 in the normal colorectal epithelium cell line (FHC) and CRC cells by immunoblotting. c Statistical analysis of MK5 expression in TCGA database. d Correlation analysis of the expression of MK5-AS1 and MK5 in GEPIA. e Transwell assays were used to determine the changes in invasion and migration abilities of HCT116 and SW620 cells after transfection. Scale bar, 100 μm for E. f Immunoblotting analysis of EMT-related markers after transfection in CRC cells, respectively. g The number of metastatic pulmonary nodules was shown and counted. The black arrow marked metastatic nodules. h After HCT116 cells with knockdown MK5 were injected into the tail vein of nude mice, In vivo fluorescence imaging, the gross lesion in lung tissues and H. E staining and antibody vimentin of metastatic nodules in the lungs were observed (× 400 magnification). Scale bar, 100 μm for H.E. The black arrow marked metastatic nodules. The data represented the mean ± SD from three independent experiments. *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01 and ***P < 0.001