Fig. 5. Cells expressing N750 survive and proliferate following prolonged mitotic arrest. HCT-116 Myc control and N750 cells were incubated in the presence of either 0.02 µg/ml or 0.2 µg/ml nocodazole for 48 hours. On day 0 the nocodazole was washed away, fresh medium added and the cells incubated for up to 7 days. At the time points indicated, cells were analysed by phase-contrast microscopy and crystal violet staining. (A) Phase-contrast images of Myc control and N750 cells at day 0 and day 7, showing that 7 days after exposure to nocodazole Myc control cells appeared larger with many cytoplasmic vacuoles. In contrast, N750 cells appeared morphologically normal. Scale bar represents 200 µm. (B) Crystal violet stained plates of the cells in (A). (C) Quantification of the bound crystal violet, showing the change in cell number over time after 48 hours incubation in nocodazole.