Phenotypic distinction and functional characterization of pro-B cells in adult mouse bone marrow

A lymphoid-committed progenitor population was isolated from mouse bone marrow based on the cell surface phenotype Thy-1.1(neg)Sca-1(pos)c-Kit(low)Lin(neg). These cells were CD43(pos)CD24(pos) on isolation and proliferated in response to the cytokine combination of steel factor, IL-7, and Flt3 ligand. Lymphoid-committed progenitors could be segregated into more primitive and more differentiated subsets based on expression of AA4.1. The more differentiated subset generated only B lymphoid cells in 92% of total colonies assayed, lacked T lineage potential, and expressed Pax5. These studies have therefore defined and isolated a B lymphoid-committed progenitor population at a developmental stage corresponding to the initial expression of CD45R.

Rapid, B lymphoid-restricted engraftment mediated by a primitive bone marrow subpopulation

Utilizing multiparameter flow cytometry, we have defined a subset of bone marrow cells containing lymphoid-restricted differentiation potential after i.v. transplantation. Bone marrow cells characterized by expression of the Sca-1 and c-kit Ags and lacking Ags of differentiating lineages were segregated into subsets based on allele-specific Thy-1.1 Ag expression. Although hematopoietic stem cells were recovered in the Thy-1.1low subset as previously described, the Thy-1.1neg subset consisted of progenitor cells that preferentially reconstituted the B lymphocyte lineage after i.v. transplantation. Recipients of Thy-1.1neg cells did not survive beyond 30 days, presumably due to the failure of erythroid and platelet lineages to recover after transplants. Thy-1.1neg cells predominantly reconstituted the bone marrow and peripheral blood of lethally irradiated recipients with B lineage cells within 2 weeks, although a low frequency of myeloid lineage cells was also detected. In contrast, myeloid progenitors outnumbered lymphoid progenitors when the Thy-1.1neg population was assayed in culture. When Thy-1. 1low stem cells were rigorously excluded from the Thy-1.1neg subset, reconstitution of T lymphocytes was rarely observed in peripheral blood after i.v. transplantation. Competitive repopulation studies showed that the B lymphoid reconstitution derived from Thy-1.1neg cells was not sustained over a 20-wk period. Therefore, the Thy-1. 1neg population defined in these studies includes transplantable, non-self-renewing B lymphocyte progenitor cells.

Expression of CD27 on murine hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells

Hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) are defined by self-renewal and multilineage differentiation potentials. In order to uncover the genetic program of HSC, we utilized high-density arrays to compare gene expression in highly purified mouse HSC and their mature progeny. One molecule specifically expressed in immature cells is CD27, a member of the TNF receptor family previously shown to play roles in lymphoid proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis. We show here that the CD27 protein is expressed by about 90% of cells in a purified HSC population. Interestingly, the CD27pos cells are enriched for cells with short-term hematopoietic activities (colony forming potential in vivo and in vitro), while the minority CD27neg population is more effective in clonal long-term transplantation.

Modulation of hematopoietic stem/progenitor cell engraftment by transforming growth factor beta

OBJECTIVE

To investigate if cell cycle progression plays a role in modulating the engraftment potential of mouse hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPC).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

HSPC were isolated from adult mouse bone marrow, cultured in vitro under conditions promoting cell cycle arrest, and subsequently were evaluated for cell cycle status, clonogenic activity, and transplant potential. RESULTS In the presence of steel factor (STL) as a survival cytokine, transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) increased the G0/G1 fraction of cycling progenitor cells (Rh(high)) after a 20-hour culture. Clonogenic activity of quiescent long-term repopulating (Rh(low)) HSPC was unaffected by this culture, whereas clonogenic potential of Rh(high) cells decreased by about 30%. In competitive repopulation assays, Rh(low) cells cultured in STL + TGF-beta engrafted better than cells cultured in STL alone. However, culture in STL + TGF-beta did not overcome the failure of Rh(high) cells to engraft after transplant. We also utilized a two-stage culture system to first induce proliferation of Rh(low) HSPC by a 48-hour culture in STL + interleukin 6 + Flt-3 ligand, followed by shifting the culture to STL + TGF-beta for 24 hours to induce cycle arrest. A competitive repopulation assay demonstrated a relative decrease in repopulating potential in cultures that were cycle arrested compared to those that were not.

CONCLUSION

Cell cycle progression by itself cannot account for the decrease in repopulating potential that is observed after ex vivo expansion. Other determinants of engraftment must be identified to facilitate the transplantation of cultured HSPC.