Fig. 2

Chemogenetic inhibition of neuronal activity in sensory Nav1.8 + innervations increases intra-tumoral proliferation and angiogenesis, and blocks anti-tumoral immune response. 1 × 10⁵ B16F10 melanoma cells were subcutaneously injected into Nav1.8‐Cre⁻/hM4Di + (n = 5) and Nav1.8‐Cre + /hM4Di + (n = 5) mice, followed by tumors removal for analysis after 16 days. A Representative immunofluorescence images of tumors labelled for endothelial cells (CD31; red) to identify blood vessels and nuclei (DAPI; blue). B Quantification of angiogenesis in melanomas by blood vessel area. C Representative immunofluorescence images of tumors labelled for Ki67 (Ki67; green) to identify cell proliferation and nuclei (DAPI; blue). D Quantification of proliferation in melanomas by the counting of Ki67 + cells per μm². Absolute number of CD4 + E and CD8 + G T cells from the melanomas of B16F10–inoculated mice. F Graph shows absolute numbers of CD4 + T cells producers of IL-17. IL-17 levels were measured in cells isolated from tumors of B16F10–inoculated Nav1.8-Cre⁻/hM4Di⁺ and Nav1.8-Cre⁺/hM4Di⁺ animals. Data are shown as mean ± SEM. Unpaired t test (ns P > 0.05; *P < 0.05)