Fig. 4

circPhf21a overexpression suppressed the proliferation and ECM anabolism of PMCs. A PMCs were transfected with circPhf21a overexpression plasmid (oe-circPhf21a) or negative control plasmid (oe-NC) at a final concentration of 1.6 ug/ml. After 48 h of transfection, the expression level of circPhf21a was measured by RT-qPCR and normalized to Gapdh level. n = 3, ***p < 0.001. B, C PMCs were transfected with oe-circPhf21a or oe-NC at a final concentration of 1.6 ug/ml. After 48 h of transfection, the proliferation of PMCs was assessed using EdU assay. n = 3, ****p < 0.0001, scale bar = 100 μm. D PMCs were transfected with oe-circPhf21a or oe-NC at a final concentration of 1.6 ug/ml. After 48 h, the mRNA expression levels of Mmp3, Mmp13, Adamts4, Col2a1 and Aggrecan were detected by RT-qPCR analysis in PMCs. n = 3, **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001. E-G PMCs were transfected with oe-circPhf21a or oe-NC at a final concentration of 1.6 ug/ml. After 48 h, protein levels of Mmp13 and Col2a1 were determined by western blotting. n = 3, **p < 0.01