Effect of the MMP inhibitors BB94 and BB3103 on the induction of capillary-like tube formation by hMVECs in 3-dimentional fibrin matrices.

The hMVECs were cultured on top of a 3-dimensional fibrin matrix in M199 supplemented with 10% human serum and 10% NBCS and stimulated without (A,B) or with the combination of 10 ng/mL bFGF and 10 ng/mL TNF-α (C-F) in the absence (C,D) or the presence of 5 μg/mL BB94 (E,F). Simultaneous addition of 30 μg/mL neutralizing polyclonal anti–u-PA antibodies (B,D,F) inhibited tube formation by 87%. The nonphase contrast photos were taken after 7 days of culture (bar represents 500 μm) and are representative of 3 independent experiments.