Erythropoietin-overexpressing mesenchymal stem cells accelerate diabetic wound healing via steroid signaling pathway modulation

Figure 2 Effects of erythropoietin-overexpressing mesenchymal stem cells on skin wound healing in diabetic mice. A: Representative macroscopic images of full-thickness dorsal skin wounds in streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice treated with vehicle (diabetes mellitus group), negative control mesenchymal stem cells, or erythropoietin-overexpressing mesenchymal stem cells at days 0, 3, 7, 10, and 14 after wounding; B: Quantification of wound area over time, expressed as a percentage of the initial wound area for the diabetes mellitus, negative control mesenchymal stem cell, and erythropoietin-overexpressing mesenchymal stem cell groups; C: Representative hematoxylin and eosin staining images of skin wound sections at day 14 and quantification of epidermal thickness; D: Representative Masson’s trichrome staining images of skin wound sections at day 14 and quantification of collagen deposition. Data are presented as mean ± SD. Superscript letters denote statistically significant differences between the indicated groups (^aP < 0.05, ^bP < 0.01, ^cP < 0.001, ^dP < 0.0001; one-way ANOVA followed by Tukey’s post hoc test). DM: Diabetes mellitus; NC-MSC: Negative control mesenchymal stem cell; EPO-MSC: Erythropoietin-overexpressing mesenchymal stem cell.