Background
Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) can be expanded infinitely in vitro and have the potential to differentiate into hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs); thus, they are considered a useful source of cells for HSC production. Although several technical in vitro
Conclusion
In this study, we optimized a two-step, serum-free, animal protein-free, KSR-free, feeder-free, chemically defined monolayer culture method for generation of HSCs and hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) from human ESCs.
Methods
Human ESCs (CHA-hES15) were cultured on growth factor-reduced Matrigel-coated dishes in the mTeSR1 serum-free medium. When the cells were 70% confluent, we initiated HSC differentiation by three methods involving (1) knockout serum replacement (KSR), cytokines, TGFb1, EPO, and FLT3L; (2) KSR, cytokines, and bFGF; or (3) cytokines and bFGF.
Results
Among the three differentiation methods, the minimal number of cytokines without KSR resulted in the greatest production of HSCs. The optimized method resulted in a higher proportion of CD34+CD43+ hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPCs) and CD34+CD45+ HPCs compared to the other methods. In addition, the HSCs showed the potential to differentiate into multiple lineages of hematopoietic cells in vitro.