Fig. 5.

Most cells in colonies were CD133⁺ and the expression pattern of pancreatic progenitor-related genes was comparable to CD133⁺ cell-derived colonies. a CD133⁺ cells consist of more than 90% of the colony cells while only less than 5% in pancreas tissue. b CD133⁺ and CD133^– cells were sorted respectively by BD Aria. Only CD133⁺ cells could form ring colonies in a 3D system. c Ring colonies from total pancreas cells and the CD133⁺ subset showed a similar expression pattern. **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.005