Agle’s minimum essential medium supplemented with 10 fetal calf serum, 2 mM glutamine, 50 IU/ml penicillin-G and 50 mg/ml streptomycin (all from Gibco, Paisley, UK). Cells were incubated in humidified air with 5 CO2 at 37uC and were subcultured once a week. Primary cultures of newborn rat neurons were Title Loaded From File obtained essentially as described elsewhere [43]. In short, newborn Sprauge-Dawley rats (Taconic Europe, Lilla Skensved, Denmark) were decapitated and the cortex dissected. The cortex tissue was sieved through a nylon mesh (80 mm) into Neurobasal A medium, 50 IU/ml penicillin, 50 mg/ml streptomycin, 0.5 mM glutamine and 2 B27 supplement, with addition of 5 ng/ml bfibroblast growth factor (b-FGF; b-fibroblast growth factor Life Technologies, Darmstadt, Germany). Cells were plated on poly-Llysine coated surface at a density of 100000 cells/cm2. After 24 h, half of the media was changed to receive a final concentration of 10 ng/ml b-FGF. Every third day, half of the medium wasMaterials and Methods Ethics statementThe animal experiments were approved by the Ethics Committee for Animal Research at Linkoping University (permit ?number 101/08).Lysosomal Stability Is Regulated by CholesterolFigure 6. Cholesterol Modulation Influences the Sensitivity of MEFs to Oxidative Stress-induced Apoptosis. Mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) deficient for both LAMP-1 and LAMP-2 (LAMPnull) were treated with U18666A or Title Loaded From File methyl-b-cyclodextrin (MbCD). A) Filipin staining of wt and LAMPnull MEFs (scale bar 10 mm). B) Phase contrast images (scale bar 5 mm) and C) viability (n = 4) of wt and LAMPnull MEFs 24 h after H2O2 exposure. Viability was measured by crystal violet staining and expressed as percentage of untreated cultures. Data are presented as the mean 6 SD, * p#0.05, ns; non-significant. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0050262.greplaced with fresh media (10 ng/ml b-FGF). Cells were used for experiments at day 12?8. LAMP-12/2, LAMP-22/2, LAMPnull and wt mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) were generated as previously described [30]. The cells were grown in Dulbecco’s minimum essential medium containing 50 IU/ml penicillin-G, 50 mg/ml streptomycin and 10 fetal calf serum (all from Gibco). Cells were incubated in humidified air with 5 CO2 at 37uC andwere subcultured twice a week. Prior to experiments, fibroblasts were trypsinized and seeded at a density that allowed them to reach 80 confluence at the time of apoptosis induction. Cells were pre-treated with U18666A (0.25-3 mg/ml), quinacrine (2 mM) and 25-HC (1 mg/ml; all from Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA) for 48 h. MbCD (400?00 mM; Sigma-Aldrich) was added to cells for 1 h to allow endocytosis and then removed andLysosomal Stability Is Regulated by Cholesterolcells were chased for 24 h. This approach was shown to deplete cholesterol from the lysosomal membrane rather than the plasma membrane [44]. Cells were treated with myriocin (10 mM; SigmaAldrich) or vehicle (dimethyl sulfoxide; DMSO) for 48 h before analysis or apoptosis induction.Flow cytometric determination of Lysotracker fluorescenceCells were stained with 50 nM Lysotracker green-26 (Invitrogen) for 5 min at 37uC and detached by trypsinization. Lysotracker fluorescence was analyzed in a LSR flow cytometer (Becton Dickinson Biosciences, Franklin Lakes, NJ, USA) using a 488 nm argon laser and the resulting fluorescence was detected in the FL1 channel using a 530628 nm filter. Data from 10000 cells were collected and was analyzed using CellQuest softwa.Agle’s minimum essential medium supplemented with 10 fetal calf serum, 2 mM glutamine, 50 IU/ml penicillin-G and 50 mg/ml streptomycin (all from Gibco, Paisley, UK). Cells were incubated in humidified air with 5 CO2 at 37uC and were subcultured once a week. Primary cultures of newborn rat neurons were obtained essentially as described elsewhere [43]. In short, newborn Sprauge-Dawley rats (Taconic Europe, Lilla Skensved, Denmark) were decapitated and the cortex dissected. The cortex tissue was sieved through a nylon mesh (80 mm) into Neurobasal A medium, 50 IU/ml penicillin, 50 mg/ml streptomycin, 0.5 mM glutamine and 2 B27 supplement, with addition of 5 ng/ml bfibroblast growth factor (b-FGF; b-fibroblast growth factor Life Technologies, Darmstadt, Germany). Cells were plated on poly-Llysine coated surface at a density of 100000 cells/cm2. After 24 h, half of the media was changed to receive a final concentration of 10 ng/ml b-FGF. Every third day, half of the medium wasMaterials and Methods Ethics statementThe animal experiments were approved by the Ethics Committee for Animal Research at Linkoping University (permit ?number 101/08).Lysosomal Stability Is Regulated by CholesterolFigure 6. Cholesterol Modulation Influences the Sensitivity of MEFs to Oxidative Stress-induced Apoptosis. Mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) deficient for both LAMP-1 and LAMP-2 (LAMPnull) were treated with U18666A or methyl-b-cyclodextrin (MbCD). A) Filipin staining of wt and LAMPnull MEFs (scale bar 10 mm). B) Phase contrast images (scale bar 5 mm) and C) viability (n = 4) of wt and LAMPnull MEFs 24 h after H2O2 exposure. Viability was measured by crystal violet staining and expressed as percentage of untreated cultures. Data are presented as the mean 6 SD, * p#0.05, ns; non-significant. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0050262.greplaced with fresh media (10 ng/ml b-FGF). Cells were used for experiments at day 12?8. LAMP-12/2, LAMP-22/2, LAMPnull and wt mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) were generated as previously described [30]. The cells were grown in Dulbecco’s minimum essential medium containing 50 IU/ml penicillin-G, 50 mg/ml streptomycin and 10 fetal calf serum (all from Gibco). Cells were incubated in humidified air with 5 CO2 at 37uC andwere subcultured twice a week. Prior to experiments, fibroblasts were trypsinized and seeded at a density that allowed them to reach 80 confluence at the time of apoptosis induction. Cells were pre-treated with U18666A (0.25-3 mg/ml), quinacrine (2 mM) and 25-HC (1 mg/ml; all from Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA) for 48 h. MbCD (400?00 mM; Sigma-Aldrich) was added to cells for 1 h to allow endocytosis and then removed andLysosomal Stability Is Regulated by Cholesterolcells were chased for 24 h. This approach was shown to deplete cholesterol from the lysosomal membrane rather than the plasma membrane [44]. Cells were treated with myriocin (10 mM; SigmaAldrich) or vehicle (dimethyl sulfoxide; DMSO) for 48 h before analysis or apoptosis induction.Flow cytometric determination of Lysotracker fluorescenceCells were stained with 50 nM Lysotracker green-26 (Invitrogen) for 5 min at 37uC and detached by trypsinization. Lysotracker fluorescence was analyzed in a LSR flow cytometer (Becton Dickinson Biosciences, Franklin Lakes, NJ, USA) using a 488 nm argon laser and the resulting fluorescence was detected in the FL1 channel using a 530628 nm filter. Data from 10000 cells were collected and was analyzed using CellQuest softwa.