Understanding the cues that regulate stem cell fate during microvascular growth will improve our ability to design cell-based angiogenic therapies for vascular diseases. Stem cells are an appealing option in part due to their ability to differentiate to pericytes, which regulate vascular remodeling. Preliminary data from our lab suggests that our rat mesentery tissue culture model is suitable for studying differentiation of exogenously delivered stem cells to vascular pericytes. Page 21 of the CELT Research Abstract Booklet.