Fig. 7. Ang II induces podocyte apoptosis by modulating Atg5. Transfection of podocytes with Atg5 siRNA significantly inhibits the protein levels of Atg5 (A). Atg5 siRNA (50 nM) reduces LC3 puncta levels increased by 10⁻⁶ M Ang II at 12 hours (B). When podocyte autophagy is disrupted by Atg5 siRNA, apoptotic podocytes are further increased over that observed with Ang II treatment as determined using FACS (C) and TUNEL assays (D). Nuclei are colored in blue by DAPI in immunofluorescence and TUNEL assay. Magnification, ×200; Bar = 10 μm. ^*P<0.05 and ^**P<0.01 versus control (without Ang II at each incubation times). ^＃P<0.05 versus positive control (with Ang II at each incubation times).