Journal: Bioactive Materials
Article Title: Ex vivo endothelialized cECM-enriched core–shell fibrous vascular graft promotes rapid regenerative remodeling in vivo
doi: 10.1016/j.bioactmat.2026.03.040
Figure Lengend Snippet: rBMSCs to endothelial differentiation and activation of different pathways . (A) Schematic representation of rBMSCs differentiated into ECs. (B) Immunofluorescent detection of (i) CD31, (ii) ICAM1, (iii) Flk1, and (iv) eNOS (scale bars: 200 μm). Quantitative analysis of circumferential coverage for (C) CD31, (D) ICAM1, (E) Flk1, and (F) eNOS (n = 4 sections). (G) Venn diagram displaying differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between rBMSCs and differentiated endothelial-like cells in C/S PE grafts analyzed via RNA sequencing. (H) Scatter plot visualizing the distribution of upregulated and downregulated DEGs. (I) Gene ontology (GO) analysis indicating enrichment of terms linked to endothelial proliferation, angiogenesis, and blood vessel development. (J–M) Heatmaps presenting clustered DEGs associated with cell differentiation (J), endothelial cell proliferation (K), angiogenesis (L), and blood vessel development (M). (N–O) Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) highlighting significant gene enrichment in angiogenesis and vascular remodeling pathways. (P) Bubble plot showing pathway enrichment and signaling activation, including VEGF, MAPK, PI3K-Akt, mTOR, HIF-1, Notch, TGF-β, and JAK-STAT pathways. (Q–R) Heatmaps illustrating the activation of Notch (Q) and VEGF (R) signaling pathway genes, supporting robust pathway engagement. (S) Circular plot showing marked upregulation of major endothelial genes (Vegfa, Nos3, Flt1, Kdr) compared to MSC-specific markers.
Article Snippet: Cow pulmonary artery endothelial (CPAE, CCL-209, ATCC) endothelial cells were used for initial cytocompatibility screening to evaluate endothelial adhesion and material safety using a standardized mature endothelial model.
Techniques: Activation Assay, RNA Sequencing, Cell Differentiation