FIG. 3.

(A) Evolution of size and shape of MSC and NC pellets cultured over a 21-day period. One representative donor and pellet of each cell type is presented here. Bar represents 0.2 cm. (B) The size (ellipse area) of cell pellets was calculated from the images above over time in culture for all the conditions tested: BM (white bars), CM (bars with dots), or CM supplemented with γ-PGA (CM+γ-PGA, bars with stripes). For each experiment, areas were compared to the areas of pellets from day 1. (C) The aspect ratio (horizontal/vertical length) of the same cell pellets was also calculated. Results are represented as box plots (MSCs: seven pellets/condition, three independent donors; NCs: six pellets/condition, four independent donors). Statistical significance was set at (*p<0.05, **p<0.025, ***p<0.001), using the Friedman paired test followed by the Dunn's multiple comparison post-test. Color images available online at www.liebertpub.com/tea