Figure 8

b-Catenin is correlated with mechanical properties and regulators of the extracellular matrix. In the tails of cACT IVDs, strong correlations existed (A) between the fraction of cells positive for b-Catenin in the NP and the tensile stiffness and (B) between the relative gene expression of b-Catenin and ADAMTS5. In the tails of cKO IVDs, moderate correlations existed (C) between the fraction of cells positive for b-Catenin in the NP and the compressive stiffness (p = 0.09) and (D) between the relative gene expression of b-Catenin and aggrecan. In the lumbar of cKO IVDs, moderate correlations existed (E) between the fraction of cells positive for b-Catenin in the NP and the compressive stiffness and (F) between the relative gene expression of b-Catenin and compressive stiffness. *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001.