Fig. 6

Effects of cholesterol and caveolin-1 (CAV-1) levels on kinetics of MSC adhesion to substrates. a,d Cell culture plastic (PL); b,e collagen I (CL); c,f fibronectin (FN). Adhesion was quantified based on labeled cell fluorescence and expressed as the percentage of adherent cells to total cells added to each microplate well. Results are presented as mean ± SD; n = 3 independent experiments per cell line per time point. MSC adhesion to PL, CL, and FN was positively related to membrane cholesterol level (higher adhesion in cholesterol-enriched MSCs (Chol) and lower adhesion in cholesterol-depleted MSCs (MβCD)), while CAV-1 knockdown (si CAV-1; MSCs transfected with CAV-1 siRNA) reduced MSC adhesion to CL and FN. Two-way ANOVA was administered to analyze the data from five MSC groups. *p < 0.0001, versus untreated or si Ctrl group (MSCs transfected with control, nonspecific siRNA)