Fig. 3.

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) ameliorate non-heart-beating (NHB)-induced graft injury and increase the recipient survival rate. Arterialized C57Bl/6-CBF1 liver transplantations were performed with 10 min of NHB time and 120 min of cold ischaemic time, respectively. In the MSC_10min group, 10⁶ MSCs were intrasplenically infused post-transplantation. In the MSC_10min + GdCl₃ group, 20 mg/Kg GdCl₃ was intraperitoneally injected 24 h before graft harvest. a MSCs were stained with red oil O and alizarin red S for adipogenic and osteogenic identification after conditioned differentiation. Undifferentiation: normal culture medium; Differentiation: conditioned culture medium. Representative images from one experiment out of three are shown at 400× magnification. b Cumulative recipient survival rates were analysed. Data from three independent experiments are combined (N = 8 for each group). Log-Rank (Mantel-Cox) test was used for comparison of different survival curves. *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01. Serum c alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and d aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels from each group were tested at 6 h post-transplantation (N = 6 for each group). e Liver grafts were sectioned for histological examination. Representative images from one experiment are shown at 200× and 400× magnification. f Suzuki scores of each section were evaluated by an experienced pathologist in a blinded fashion (N = 6 for each group). c, d, f Results are presented as mean ± SEM for each group. *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01. NS not significant