Fig. 6

The 29-mer/alginate gel induces CD146⁺ TSPC proliferation in the peripheral region of the injured Achilles tendon. a Immunofluorescence analysis of the levels of CD146⁺ TSPC (green) and blood vessels (marked by CD31; red) at 2 days postoperation with the delivery of the 29-mer/alginate gel. Nuclei were visualized with Hoechst 33258 staining. Representative images are from six sections per rat tendon, with six rats per group. The digital image analysis of CD146⁺ TSPC was performed blinded on an average of six randomly selected × 400 magnification fields from each section, using a Zeiss epifluorescence microscope and Zeiss software. *P < 0.01 versus vehicle-treated group. b Double-immunofluorescence analysis of CD146 (green) and BrdU (red). Insets are the expanded TSPC detected by superimposing CD146, BrdU, and nuclear images using a digital program. Representative images are from three independent experiments with six rats per group. c Percentages of CD146/BrdU double-positive cells per total CD146⁺ cells. *P < 0.01 versus vehicle/alginate gel treatment