Morphological and functional responses of three-dimensional-cultured colorectal cancer spheres to anticancer drugs

Figure 7 Cell viability and caspase-3/7 activity in colorectal adenocarcinoma spheres after anticancer drug treatment. Colorectal adenocarcinoma cells were cultured in 96-well low-attachment plates, and anticancer drugs (30 μM) were added after 3 days. On day 7 post-treatment, cell viability was assessed using the ATP and water-soluble tetrazolium 8 (WST-8) assays. ATP luminescence and WST-8 absorbance (450 nm) were normalized to those of controls (set at 100%). Apoptosis was evaluated on day 7 using the Caspase-Glo 3/7 3D Assay, with luminescence measured after a 3-hour incubation at 23 °C. Data represent the means ± SD from three independent experiments (each performed in triplicate). ^aP < 0.05 vs control group; ^bP < 0.0001 vs control group. 5-FU: 5-fluorouracil; WST-8: Water-soluble tetrazolium 8.