Possible role of the Ec peptide of IGF‑1Ec in cartilage repair. Armakolas N1, Dimakakos A2, Armakolas A2, Antonopoulos A1, Koutsilieris M2. Mol Med Rep. 2016 Oct;14(4):3066-72. doi: 10.3892/mmr.2016.5627. Epub 2016 Aug 12. The Ec peptide (PEc) of insulin-like growth factor 1 Ec (IGF-1Ec) induces human mesenchymal stem cell (hMSC) mobilization and activates extracellular signal‑regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK 1/2)