Fig. 1.

Pericyte cell labeling in cerebral blood vessels was performed in an 8.5 year. old ASD donor (HSB-4640). All antibodies were mouse monoclonal and were used at 1:1000 dilution. a, b: The label with CD146 showed pericyte cell bodies on the abluminal surface of arteriole vessels. CD146 is a mesenchymal stem cell marker that labels pericytes cells in the brain. No clear labeling of smaller vessels (capillaries) was found. c, d The label with α-SMA showed pericyte cell bodies and fibers on the abluminal surface of arteriole vessels. α-SMA is the contractile protein in smooth muscle and in pericytes. No clear labeling of smaller vessels (capillaries) was found. e, f Vimentin IR of cell bodies and fibers appeared on the abluminal surface of arteriole and capillaries. Vimentin labeled the cell and its processes similar to nestin-positive pericytes. Vimentin is a fibrillary cytoskeletal protein seen in immature pericytes. g, h The label with nestin showed pericyte cell bodies and fibers on the abluminal surface of arteriole vessels. Nestin is a fibrillary cytoskeletal protein expressed in cells that are capable of proliferate. a, c, e, g were photographed with a ×25 (scale bar 50 µm) and × 63 (scale bar 30 µm) objective