Mouse tumor xenograft model

The animal experiments were based on the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals and conducted in accordance with the protocol approved by the China Medical University Application for Laboratory Animal Welfare and Ethical Committee. The experiments were performed using 6-week-old male mice (n=24) (BALB/c-nu mice; Beijing HFK Bioscience, China). Mice were kept throughout the experiment in pleasant conditions (temperature, 24–26 °C; humidity, 45–55%) and were able to access food and water freely. After a week of adjustable feeding, 3×10⁶ cells were injected into nude mice armpits per group. Tumor size was measured and recorded every three days since formation. After 21 days of injection, mice were killed by injecting of 200 mg/kg sodium pentobarbital. The tumor nodules were subsequently removed for following analysis.