Fig. 6A–B.

(A) RT-PCR experiments were performed to determine whether osteoblasts express strong small VEGF splice variants and the VEGF receptor. RT-PCR for VEGF splice variants revealed VEGF121 and VEGF165 and its receptor VEGFR-2 (KDR). (B) ELISA experiments demonstrated a stable production of osteoblast-derived VEGF under culture conditions for at least 72 hours. A 2.9-fold increase in VEGF protein concentration (from 164.45 ± 24 pg/mL to 476.5 ± 64.85 pg/mL) could be detected by ELISA after 72 hours’ culturing. Long green lines = mean value; short green lines = SD.