Figure 3.

CSF-2 Stimulates Multiple Beneficial Functions of MSCs through CD116

MSCs were treated with 300 ng/mL CSF-2 alone or were concomitantly transfected with shRNA targeting CD116; subsequent changes in osteoblast differentiation (A) and in the expression of pluripotency-associated factors NANOG and SOX2 (B) were measured with alizarin red staining and real-time PCR, respectively. The relative quantification of calcium mineral content was determined by measuring the absorbance at 570 nm. The inhibitory effect of CD116 knockdown on CSF-2-induced changes in the migratory capacity were measured by the transwell assay (C) and western blotting for MMP-2 and MMP-9 (D). (E) The attenuating effects of CD116 depletion on CSF-2-induced expression of fibronectin and twist in MSCs were measured by real-time PCR. β-actin was used as the internal control. The data represent the mean ± SD from three independent experiments.