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. 2016 Mar 18;6:23278. doi: 10.1038/srep23278

Figure 4. Blockage of TGF-β impaired HUVEC-mediated Treg cell differentiation.

Figure 4

CD4+CD25−Foxp3− T cells were co-cultured with primary female or male HUVECs at a cell-to-cell ratio of 1:1 (T cells:HUVECs). TGF-β was blocked in some experiments. After 48 and 72 hours, the number of CD4+Foxp3+ T cells was determined. Female HUVECs (a) significantly increased the conversion to Treg cells after 72 hours which was significantly suppressed by a neutralizing TGF-β antibody. Similar results, although not statistically significant, were obtained with male HUVECs (b). Co-cultures with HUVECs are given as fold change of controls (T cells cultured alone). Samples from four normal pregnant women were analyzed in duplicates. Data are presented as means plus S.E.M. Statistical analysis among groups was performed using Two-way-ANOVA followed by Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons. *p < 0.05; ***p < 0.001.