New research in the sub-journal of Nature reveals the regulatory mechanism of hematopoietic stem cells entering the bone marrow for the first time

Hematopoietic Stem Cells (HSCs) are like "seeds" of blood, capable of producing almost all types of blood cells through proliferation and differentiation

In adult mammals, hematopoietic stem cells mainly exist in the bone marrow, and their maintenance, quiescence and proliferation are regulated by the bone marrow microenvironment

Recently, a new study completed by the Max Planck Institute of Germany, the School of Medicine of South China University of Technology, and the Guangzhou Institute of Biomedicine and Health of the Chinese Academy of Sciences found that during the development of hematopoietic stem cells, arterial blood vessels regulate hematopoietic stem cells for the first time into the embryo.

The researchers point out that the interaction between adult animal hematopoietic stem cells and the bone marrow microenvironment has been well studied, but little is known about how the embryonic bone marrow microenvironment regulates the behavior of hematopoietic stem cells

Using genetically manipulated mice, the researchers found that, unlike in adulthood, bone nerves do not function as a hematopoietic stem cell microenvironment during embryonic development

▲The huge difference between hematopoietic stem cells and bone marrow microenvironment between embryonic and adulthood (Image source: Reference [1])

The experimental results revealed that the bone artery is the key microenvironmental cell in the embryonic stage

Using recombinant protein Wnt2 to treat hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells in vitro can promote the proliferation of hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells and enhance the ability of hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells to form clones in vitro

▲Hematopoietic stem cells gather next to arterial blood vessels during embryonic stage (Image source: Reference [1])

Note: The original text has been deleted

References:

[1] Yang Liu et al.