Fig. 4. Increasing seeding density reverses the effect of substrate stiffness on cell cycle progression. (A–D) BrdU incorporation assay shows that a soft substrate arrests cell cycle progression. However, at a high seeding density, BrdU uptake is high even on a soft substrate indicating a rescue from cell cycle arrest. (DAPI: blue and BrdU+: magenta) (Mean ± standard error, n ≥ 900) (E) indicates that cells with more neighbours have a higher chance of overcoming the effect of substrate and progressing through the cell cycle (n = 400).