Stem cell study finds source of earliest blood cells during development
Friday, March 21, 2014 - 13:00
in Health & Medicine
Hematopoietic stem cells are now routinely used to treat patients with cancers and other disorders of the blood and immune systems, but researchers knew little about the progenitor cells that give rise to them during embryonic development. Scientists have now created novel cell assays that identified the earliest arising HSC precursors based on their ability to generate all major blood cell types (red blood cells, platelets and immune cells).