New research shows promise for the production of patient-matched blood cells for therapies, disease modeling and drug screening
The approach is reliable, cost-effectiv e and relatively simple. By eliminating variables used in other systems, the lab has streamlined the process of developing blood cell precursors. This allows scientists to study the factors that affect early stages of blood cell development, and provides a mechanism for clinician-researchers to develop therapies for patients. In a series of experiments, the lab converted adult skin cells into hPSC and then used these patient specific cells to optimize their platform of blood cell precursor derivation. Various assays were employed in order to demonstrate the ability of blood cell precursors to form mature cells of blood lineage. The cells were identified in collaboration with immunology labs at Lurie Children's and Rosalind Franklin University. A description of the work, entitled "Cytokine Free Directed Differentiation of hPSC Efficiently Produces Hemogenic Endothelium With Lymphoid Potential," is published online in the journa...