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Stem Cells

Regulatory functions of TRAIL in hematopoietic progenitors: human umbilical cord blood and murine bone marrow transplantation

Abstract

The tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) signaling pathway has selective toxicity to malignant cells. The TRAIL receptors DR4 and DR5 are expressed at low levels in human umbilical cord blood cells (3–15%) and are upregulated by incubation with the cognate ligand, triggering apoptosis in 70–80% of receptor-positive cells (P<0.001). Apoptosis is not induced in hematopoietic progenitors, as determined from sustained severe combined immunodeficiency reconstituting potential and clonogenic activity. Furthermore, elimination of dead cells after incubation with TRAIL for 72 h results in a threefold enrichment in myeloid progenitors. Exposure to TRAIL in semisolid cultures showed synergistic activity of DR4 and granulocyte/macrophage colony-stimulating factor in recruiting lineage-negative (lin) and CD34+ progenitors and in promoting the formation of large colonies. In murine bone marrow, 30% of lin cells express TRAIL-R2 (the only murine receptor), and the receptor is upregulated after transplantation in cycling and differentiating donor cells that home to the host marrow. However, this receptor is almost ubiquitously expressed in the most primitive (linSCA-1+c-kit+) progenitors, and stimulates the clonogenic activity of lin cells (P<0.001), suggesting a tropic function after transplantation. It is concluded that TRAIL does not trigger apoptosis in hematopoietic progenitors, and upregulation of its cognate receptors under stress conditions mediates tropic signaling that supports recovery from hypoplasia.

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Acknowledgements

This work was funded by grants from the Frankel Trust for Experimental Bone Marrow Transplantation (JS, IY and NA) and the United States–Israel Binational Science Foundation (2003276 to NA and IY). We thank the technical staff for their outstanding support: Mrs Natalia Binkovsky, Mrs Ela Zuzovsky and Mrs Ana Zemlianski.

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Correspondence to N Askenasy.

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Mizrahi, K., Stein, J., Pearl-Yafe, M. et al. Regulatory functions of TRAIL in hematopoietic progenitors: human umbilical cord blood and murine bone marrow transplantation. Leukemia 24, 1325–1334 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/leu.2010.97

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