FIG. 5.

Investigation of the cell repopulation in the scaffolds after transplantation. (A) The expression of hepatocyte genes ALB, α-fetoprotein (AFP), and cytokeratin 18 (CK-18) was analyzed by real time RT-PCR. Cells expressed these genes at a higher level on days 14 and 30 after WJ-MSCs in scaffolds were transplanted into liver-injured mice compared with no transplantation control (n=5). *p<0.05 relative to respective control. (B) The expression of ALB, AFP, and CK-18 was also analyzed by immunocytochemistry. Cells expressed ALB, AFP, and CK-18 on days 14 and 30 after WJ-MSCs in scaffolds were transplanted into liver-injured mice. (C) The differentiation of WJ-MSCs into hepatocyte-like cells was examined by periodic acid–Schiff staining. WJ-MSCs differentiated into hepatocyte-like cells on days 14 and 30 post-transplantation. (D) The differentiation of WJ-MSCs into endothelial-like cells was examined by real-time RT-PCR. Cells expressed endothelial cell genes Flk-1, vWF, and VE-cadherin on days 14 and 30 after WJ-MSCs in scaffolds were transplanted into liver-injured mice (n=5). *p<0.01 relative to respective control. Color images available online at www.liebertpub.com/tea