Identification of AF and NP biomarkers of the mature bovine intervertebral disc through z proportion test analysis. Investigated genes encoding structural proteins (a), transcription factors (b), signaling factors (c), pluripotency and stem cell marker (d), markers in a broader metabolic context (e), and other proteins related to the IVD (f) are displayed on the x‐axis. The percentage of cells transcribing a gene is represented on the y‐axis, Blue bars represent NP and green bars represent AF cells. Statistical significance: *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001.