Fig. 9

Exosomal circCOL1A1 promotes angiogenesis of HUVECs via activating Smad2/3 pathway. HUVECs were transfected with pcDNA3.1-NC, pcDNA3.1-Smad2 or pcDNA3.1-Smad3, followed by treatment with CRC cell-derived exosomes. (A) The circCOL1A1 level in HUVECs was determined by qRT-PCR. (B) The protein levels of EIF4A3, p-Smad2, Smad2, p-Smad3, Smad3, and VEGFR in HUVECs were detected by western blot. (C) Cell proliferation was monitored by CCK-8 assay. (D) Cell migration was assessed by wound healing assay. (E) The in vitro angiogenesis was detected by tube formation assay. *, P < 0.05, **, P < 0.01, ***, P < 0.001