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BMT and Stem Cells

Multipotent neural precursors express neural and hematopoietic factors, and enhance ex vivo expansion of cord blood CD34+ cells, colony forming units and NOD/SCID-repopulating cells in contact and noncontact cultures

Leukemia volume 19, pages 91–97 (2005)Cite this article

Abstract

In view of the possible crosstalks between hematopoiesis and neuropoiesis, we evaluated two microenvironments, murine neonatal neural cell line C17.2 and primary embryonic aorta–gonad–mesonephros (AGM) stromal cells, on the ex vivo expansion of CD34+ cells from human cord blood. In a contact culture system, C17.2 or AGM cells significantly enhanced the expansion of CD34+ cells to a panel of early and committed hematopoietic progenitor cells. In a noncontact transwell system, pre-established C17.2 cells significantly increased the expansion of total nucleated cells, CD34+ cells and multilineage colony forming cells (P<0.01). Expanded cells were infused into nonobese diabetic/severe-combined immunodeficient mice. The engraftment of human (hu)CD45+ cells in the bone marrow of these mice was consistently higher in all the 10 experiments conducted with the support of C17.2 cells when compared with those in respective control groups (11.9 vs 2.43%, P=0.03). Using RT-PCR and Southern blot analysis, we showed that AGM and C17.2 cells expressed a panel of hematopoietic, bone morphogenetic and neurotrophic factors. Our data provided the first evidence on the promoting effects of a neural progenitor cell line on hematopoiesis at a noncontact condition. The mechanism could be mediated by the expression of multilineage regulatory factors.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the late Dr David Walsh for his support on our research program, and nurses of the Labour Ward for their assistance in collecting umbilical cord blood. This study was financially supported by the Hong Kong Paediatrics Bone Marrow Transplant Fund, The Chinese University of Hong Kong and the Industrial Support Fund AF/203/98, Department of Industry, Hong Kong Government Special Administrative Region.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Paediatrics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

    K Li, S M Lee, R J Su, X B Zhang, P M P Yuen, C K Li, M Yang, L Y W Ng & T F Fok

  2. Department of Anatomical and Cellular Pathology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

    K S Tsang

  3. Laboratory Animal Services Centre, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

    A E James & Y H J Tse

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  1. K Li
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Correspondence to K Li.

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Li, K., Lee, S., Su, R. et al. Multipotent neural precursors express neural and hematopoietic factors, and enhance ex vivo expansion of cord blood CD34+ cells, colony forming units and NOD/SCID-repopulating cells in contact and noncontact cultures. Leukemia 19, 91–97 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.leu.2403542

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