FIG. 2.

Effects of cell seeding density on the endothelial phenotype of ASCs. (A) DNA content revealed that ASCs seeded at the two higher densities reached a final density of 65,000 cells/cm² within three days, while those seeded at 3000 cells/cm² took longer to reach a final density that was still significantly less. (B) mRNA expression of endothelial markers increased by increasing the seeding density by day 14. (C) Morphologically, the ASCs seeded at higher densities were more densely packed and aligned. (D) Only the ASCs seeded at 20,000 cells/cm² gave rise to CD31+ vessels. (E) Cells remained uniformly distributed when seeded at 3000 and 10,000 cells/cm², while those seeded at 20,000 cells/cm² aggregated into dense clusters by day 14. Significance indicated as *p<0.05 or **p<0.01. Scale bars=100 μm (C, D) and 250 μm (E). DAPI, 4′,6-diamino-2-phenylindole. vWF, von Willebrand factor. Color images available online at www.liebertonline.com/tea