TFAM and colorectal carcinoma: Flow cytometric analysis revealed that increasing the mtDNA copy number by TFAM overexpression remarkably inhibited the apoptosis induced by carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenyl hydrazone (CCCP, an uncoupler of OXPHOS) in both MSS CRC cell lines, whereas the percentages of total apoptotic cells were significantly higher in cells with TFAM knockdown (Fig. 3a, b).