Effect of 17β‑estradiol in rat bone marrow‑derived endothelial progenitor cells

The aim of the present study was to investigate the bionomics of rat bone marrow endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) following 17β‑estradiol treatment at various concentrations. Total mononuclear cells were extracted from rat bone marrow by density gradient centrifugation. Following cultivation for 7 days, attached cells were incubated with various concentrations of 17β‑estradiol (0, 10 and 100 nmol/l). The proliferation and migration activities of EPCs were measured by MTT and transwell chamber assays. In vitro vasculogenic activities were measured using type I collagen. Flow cytometry was performed to analyze differentiation into endothelial cells. The results indicated that at 7 days following culture, CD133 and CD34 cell markers were 69.44 and 81.05%, respectively. MTT assay demonstrated that the optical density (OD) value of the 10 nmol/l group was markedly higher than that of the 0 and 100 nmol/l groups. The OD value of the 0 nmol/l group was higher than the 100 nmol/l group (P<0.05). EPC migration, in vitro vascularization and differentiation were higher in the 100 and 10 nmol/l groups compared with the 0 nmol/l group. These parameters were higher in the 100 nmol/l than the 10 nmol/l group (P<0.05). In conclusion, the results of the present study demonstrated that migration, in vitro vasculogenesis and differentiation into endothelial cells is regulated by 17β‑estradiol and enhanced in a concentration-dependent manner. Proliferation levels were contrary to these observations, with levels decreasing as the concentration of 17β‑estradiol increased.