Figure 2.

Decreased DKK1 expression and enhanced WNT pathway signaling and osteoblast differentiation in AS. MSCs from the control group and the AS group were cultured in vitro with osteogenic medium (OM) for 21 days. (a,b) Axin2, Dkk1, Runx2, Sparc and Osx expression levels were determined with the quantitative RT-PCR method. Each gene’s expression is presented as a fold expression in AS cells relative to the control group expression normalized to unity. (c,d) ALP activity in cultured cells. (c) Whole culture dish images (top row) and microscopic photographs (bottom row). (d) Scatter plots depicting the quantification of ALP stain density. Data are presented as mean ± SD. * = p < 0.05; ** = p < 0.01; *** = p < 0.001; **** = p < 0.0001.