Fig. 4

Quantification of total and DNA-normalized hydroxyproline (OH-proline) (A, B), elastin (C, D), and sulphated glycosaminoglycans (s-GAG) (E, F) synthesized by hUCPVCs and BMMSCs (N = 3 donors each, n = 3 technical replicates per donor) cultured in StemMACS™ and ascorbic acid (AA)-supplemented StemMACS™ culture media. hUCPVCs synthesized significantly more total A OH-proline (p = 0.021), C elastin (p = 0.00026) and E s-GAG (p = 0.025) than their BMMSC counterparts cultured in StemMACS™. Supplementation with 50 μM AA did not significantly alter ECM protein synthesis in either cell population. Similarly, DNA-normalized B OH-proline, D elastin, and F s-GAG content in hUCPVC cultures was higher than that of BMMSCs in both StemMACS™ and AA-supplemented StemMACS™ culture media, although this difference was only statistically significant for DNA-normalized elastin content (p = 0.042 and p = 0.035, respectively). G Total DNA content of hUCPVCs cultured in StemMACS™ and AA-supplemented StemMACS™ culture media was significantly greater than that of their BMMSC counterparts (p = 0.0020 and p = 0.0087). Reported values are mean ± SEM; statistical analysis by unpaired t-test. Each shade corresponds to a different donor of hUCPVCs (Donor 0917003; Donor 0917004; Donor 0317004 from dark to light shade of blue) and BMMSCs (Donor 8013L; Donor 36341; Donor 36550 from light to dark shade of yellow/orange)