Fig. 9

HUCDMSCs therapy enhanced the expressions of small vessel density in kidney parenchyma by day 60 after DKD induction. A–D Microscopic finding (100x) of alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) stain for identification of small vessels (gray color) in kidney parenchyma. E Analytic results of number of small vessel (≤ 25 μm), * versus other groups with different symbols (†, ‡, §), p < 0.0001. Scale bars in right lower corner represent 100 µm. All statistical analyses were performed by one-way ANOVA, followed by Bonferroni multiple comparison post hoc test (n = 6 for each group). Symbols (*, †, ‡, §) indicate significance (at 0.05 level). SC = sham-operated control; DKD = diabetic kidney disease; HUCDMSC^Low = human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cell of lower dose (2.1 × 10⁵ cells); HUCDMSC^High = human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cell of higher dose (6.3 × 10⁵ cells)