Figure 2
Heart structure is improved and BNP levels are decreased in old rats treated with extracellular vesicles secreted by neonatal cardiosphere-derived cell (CDC-EVs). (A) CDC-EV-injected rats (n = 12) had decreased thickness of the anterior and posterior left ventricular (LV) walls and reduced LV mass. Control PBS rats (n = 14) showed an opposite trend. (B) Representative mid-heart sections from a rat in each group. (C) Heart/body weight ratio (BW) was lower in CDC-EV (n = 6) versus PBS (n = 7) treated rats. (D) Histological sections of myocardium from a rat in each group stained with hematoxylin and eosin. (E) Pooled data for cardiomyocyte cross sectional area in CDC-EV-injected (n = 6) versus PBS-injected (n = 6) rats. (F) Representative heart sections stained with Masson’s trichrome. (G) The CDC-EV-group (n = 7) exhibited a decrease of fibrosis versus control PBS (n = 6). (H) The decrease in serum levels of BNP was significant after 16 weeks of treatment in CDC-EV group (n = 7) while in the control PBS rats (n = 7), the change was not significant. AW: left ventricular anterior wall; PW: left ventricular posterior wall; LV: left ventricle. All significant p-values are represented. Blue values (CDC-EV group) represent the significance of the difference between baseline and the specific time-point within the group estimated with paired Student’s t-test. Black values represent the significance between the groups at the same time point estimated with two tailed Student’s t-test. Data presented are means ± s.e.m.
