Fig. 2: Hyperglycemic microenvironment increases cell death and MMP9 activity in hCSCs.

The hCSCs were treated with normal (NG) or high (HG) dose of glucose for 24 h and subsequently used for analyses of cell death and MMP9 activity. a Representative TUNEL assay for apoptosis in hCSCs. TNFα + cyclohexamide treatment was a positive control for TUNEL. b Flow cytometry assay for Annexin V/DAPI, a marker of cell death, in HG or NG medium. c In-gel-gelatin zymography showing increased activity of MMP9 in hyperglycemic hCSCs. Values are expressed as mean ± SEM. Each dot represents one sample. Student t-test was used. P < 0.05 is considered statistically significant.