Figure 2

Multipotent differentiation of S-BMMSCs. (A) Alizarin Red S and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) staining showed that S-BMMSCs were similar to regular BMMSCs in osteogenic differentiation in vitro. (B) S-BMMSCs or regular BMMSCs (4 × 10⁶ cells/transplant) were transplanted into immunocompromised mice using HA/TCP (HA) as a carrier for eight weeks. Bone formation was detected in S-BMMSC and BMMSC transplants, evidenced by H & E staining. HA, hydroxyapatite tricalcium phosphate; B, bone; M, bone marrow; CT, connective tissue. Bar = 50 μm. (C-D) S-BMMSCs are capable of forming Oil Red O positive cells (C) and expression of pparγ 2 and lpl mRNA as seen in regular BMMSCs (D). Glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (gapdh) was used as an internal control. The results are representative of five independent experiments. Scale bars = 100 μm. (E) Chondrogenic differentiation was assessed by Alcian blue staining for acidic sulfated mucosubstances, Pollak's Trichrome staining for collagen, and immunohistochemical staining for collagen type II. S-BMMSCs were able to differentiate into chondrocytes as observed in regular BMMSCs. Bar = 50 μm. The results are representative of three independent experiments. The graph bar represents mean ± SD. BMMSCs, bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells; S-BMMSCs, BMMSCs in suspension; SD, standard deviation.