Fig. 2.

Aortic ring angiogenesis assay. Top: representative images of aortic rings in the presence of saline, empty NPs, and VEGF-NPs. Discrete sprouts are indicative of a proangiogenic environment. Bottom: nean number of sprouts per ring over time in the various conditions. Nine replicates were performed. The rate of formation followed a gradual exponential curve and was greatest for the VEGF-NP group. Values are means ± SE; n = 9 for all groups. *Significance between the VEGF-NP group and either of the two control groups at P < 0.05.