Cell proliferation and apoptosis in vitro and in xenografts of BPH-1-fibroblast-combined-grafted model.

(A) Cell proliferation of BPH-1 cells in mono-culture. High concentrations of finasteride did not inhibit cell proliferation in mono-culture. (B) Cell proliferation of BPH-1 cells co-cultured with wild-type fibroblasts or c-Jun^-/- fibroblasts. In the presence of fibroblasts, finasteride repressed cell proliferation by 30% (p = 0.003). (C&D) Growth curve of xenografts in the BPH-1-fibroblast-combined-grafted model. Compared with the BPH-1 mono-grafted group, wild-type fibroblasts (c-Jun^+/+) promoted xenograft growth whereas c-Jun^-/- fibroblasts did not stimulate xenograft growth. Finasteride did not have a significant impact on xenograft growth in the presence or absence of fibroblasts in limited 5-week experimental period.