Fig 4. Angle of orientation of HAAECs.

(A) Angle of orientation (absolute value) of HAAECs on the inner and outer walls of curvature following 24hr of flow conditioning at an inlet WSS of 10dyne/cm² (n = 3, mean angle ± SEM). Both the inner and outer walls of the inlet were significantly more oriented in the direction of axial flow when compared to static controls (Bonferroni post-hoc test, P<0.01), however, flow conditioned HAAECs were significantly less oriented across the longitudinal axis in the developing flow region (Bonferroni post-hoc test, P<0.01). In both the inner and outer wall of the Developing and Dean’s flow regions, HAAECs were significantly less oriented along the vessel axis when compared to their respective inlet control (Bonferroni post-hoc test, P<0.01). (B) Representative cartoon of the angle of orientation (θ) of the longitudinal cell axis with 0^o being axial and 90^o being circumferential to the channel.