Increased expression of CXCR4 and integrin αM in hypoxia-preconditioned cells contributes to improved cell retention and angiogenic potency

Cell‐based angiogenesis is a promising method for the treatment of ischemic diseases, but the poor retention of implanted cells in targeted tissues is a major drawback. We tested whether hypoxic preconditioning increased retention and angiogenic potency of implanted cells in ischemic tissue. Hypoxic preconditioning of mouse peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMNCs) was done with 24 h of culture under 2% O 2 . Normoxia‐cultured PBMNCs were used...