Fig. 5.

Newly formed coronary vessels are functionally competent. (A) Large coronary artery and its branches located in the viable myocardium of a treated rat contain rhodamine-labeled dextran (Rh-D, red) and possess EGFP-positive wall (green). Coll, collagen (blue). (B) Functional integration of newly formed vessels (EGFP-positive wall, green) with resident vessels (EGFP-negative wall). The white circles delimit the sites of anastomosis. (C) Coronary blood flow in untreated (MI) and treated (MI-T) infarcts. SO, sham-operated. (D) The new vessel and its branches are surrounded by EGFP-positive cells within the infarct. EGFP-positive cells (green) correspond to newly formed myocytes (Lower, α-SA, red). (E) Myocardial regeneration in the apex, mid-portion of the left ventricle (MP), and base is shown quantitatively. (F) Cardiac function. Left ventricular end-diastolic pressure (LVEDP), LV developed pressure (LVDP), positive and negative dP/dt, and diastolic wall stress improved in treated rats.