FIG. 6.

Construct tissue formation after 21 days of culture. (A) Macroscopic images showed more drastic construct deformation for all constructs than day 10. Ruler ticks=1 mm. (B) Wet weight percentage of biologic tissues in constructs (n=3). (C) Histological evaluation of the constructs (a–c: H&E staining, 40×, scale bars=500 μm. d–f: MTS, 200×, scale bars=50 μm). (D) Cell density of the constructs approximated by nucleus counting of construct cross sections using Nikon Elements software (n=6). Pl-P-PGS group demonstrated significantly higher cell density than the other groups. Values represent mean±standard error, **p<0.01. Analysis performed in triplicate. (E) Immunofluorescent images of anti–von Willebrand factor staining revealed that platelets (red) were still present in Pl-P-PGS constructs after 21 days. DAPI co-staining (blue) labeled cell nuclei and is also nonspecifically adsorbed by PGS. 100×, scale bars=100 μm. MTS, Masson's trichrome; DAPI, 4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole. Color images available online at www.liebertonline.com/tea