Figure 3.

Intact ECM Scaffold Stimulates Vasculogenesis

(A) Basic fibroblast growth factor (FGF)-2 protein levels measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in the infarcted myocardium of sham-treated (n = 16) and intact (n = 16) and inactivated (n = 16) ECM scaffold–treated animals 14 weeks post-MI (1-way ANOVA). Representative confocal images depicting blood vessels (green = alpha smooth muscle actin) within the infarcted myocardium of a sham-treated (C) and intact (D) and glutaraldehyde-inactivated ECM scaffold (E)-treated animals. (B) Vascular density measured in the infarcted myocardium of sham-treated (n = 9) and intact (n = 9) and glutaraldehyde-inactivated (n = 9) ECM scaffold–treated animals 14 weeks post-MI (1-way ANOVA). HPF = high-power field; other abbreviations as in Figure 1.