Fig. 2

PES1 promotes ESCC tumorigenesis and inhibits CD8⁺ T cell infiltration. A–C A subcutaneous tumor formation assay in C57BL/6 J mice was performed to evaluate the effects of PES1 knockdown on AKR cells. (n = 6 mice per group) The representative image of subcutaneous tumors (A), tumor growth curve was shown B and tumor weight were shown (C). ***p < 0.001. D Western blot analysis PES1 expression in subcutaneous tumors. E–G Effect of PES1 knockdown in AKR tumors on T cell function. Representative quantification of CD45⁺/CD3⁺ T cells (E), CD3⁺/CD8⁺ T cells F and CD8⁺/GZMB⁺ T cells G for the indicated groups (n = 6 mice per group). *p < 0.05; **p < 0.01. H HE and IHC were performed to examine the tumor area and detect the expression of CD3, CD8, and GZMB. Scale bar = 100 μm