Inhibition of SOX9 and cholesterol synthesis deaccelerates tumor growth in vivo. (A) Ten million SOX9⁻ Karpas-422 cells were subcutaneously injected into each nude mouse (n = 5). Three weeks after transplantation, the mice were euthanized and tumor size (A), tumor volume (B), apoptosis (C), proliferation (D), and cholesterol contents (E) were measured, and DLBCL morphology (F) was examined in the mice. Ten million DLBCL cells harboring a high level (Karpas-422) or a low level (SUDHL8) of SOX9 were subcutaneously injected into each nude mouse (n = 5). Meanwhile, 10 mg/kg U18666A (every 2 days) or 50 mg/kg simvastatin (every 2 days) were either orally administered or intraperitoneal injected into the DLBCL xenograft-recipient mice for a week. Bar represents 50 μm. Three weeks after transplantation and drug administration, the mice were euthanized and tumor size (G), relative tumor weight (H), and relative cholesterol contents (I) were measured. (B-I) Data represent the mean ± SD from technical triplicates. *P < .05; **P < .01; ***P < .001; ****P < .005.