Cord Blood Stem and Progenitor Cells

Cord blood has served as a source of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells for successful repopulation of the blood cell system in patients with malignant and nonmalignant disorders. It was information on these rare immature cells in cord blood that led to the first use of cord blood for transplantation. Further information on these cells and how they can be manipulated both in vitro and in vivo will likely enhance the utility and broadness of applicability of cord blood for treatment of human disease. This chapter reviews information on the clinical and biological properties of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells, as well as the biology of endothelial progenitor cells, and serves as a source for the methods used to detect and quantitate these important functional cells. Specifically, methods are presented for enumerating human cord blood myeloid progenitor cells, including granulocyte‐macrophage (CFU‐GM), erythroid (BFU‐E), and multipotential (CFU‐GEMM or CFU‐Mix) progenitors, and their replating potential; hematopoietic stem cells, as assessed in vitro for long‐term culture‐initiating cells (LTC‐ICs), cobblestone area‐forming cells (CAFCs), and myeloid–lymphoid‐initiating cells (ML‐ICs), and as assessed in vivo for nonobese diabetic (NOD)/severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) mouse repopulating cells (SRCs); and high and low proliferative potential endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs).