Chapter category: Stem Cells
Approaches to the Isolation and Characterization of Hematopoietic Stem and Progenitor Cells
Chapter authors:
S. Scott Perry and Gerald J. Spangrude
The ability to identify and isolate hematopoietic stem cells from mouse bone marrow has allowed researchers to study these cells in isolation from later stages of development. These studies have led to a more refined understanding of the nature of mammalian hematopoiesis. After a brief review of methods for isolation of bone marrow stem cells, we consider the next stages of development and focus on approaches to defining the differentiating progeny of hematopoietic stem cells. In particular, we consider the progenitors of lymphopoiesis and how the distinction of these progenitors from those of the myeloid lineages helps illuminate the mechanisms of lineage commitment and differentiation. Recent technical and intellectual advances which begin to define pathways and mechanisms of hematopoietic differentiation will help establish paradigms for general mechanisms of differentiation in other organ systems.
