Fig. 1

Cryopreservation, thawing and maintenance of differentiated PDGFRα-positive cells. iMSCs were treated with connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) and l-ascorbic acid (LAA) for a period of 21 days to allow their differentiation into PDGFRα-positive cells. Post day 21, the cells were cryopreserved for 3–4 weeks as a new approach, then thawed and sub-cultured. The survival of the cells was assessed using MTT assay and functional validation was conducted using flow cytometry for detection of cell surface markers, qRT-PCR for gene expression analysis and western blotting for protein expression analysis