Primitive Human Hematopoietic Cells Are Enriched in Cord Blood Compared With Adult Bone Marrow or Mobilized Peripheral Blood as Measured by the Quantitative In Vivo SCID-Repopulating Cell Assay

We have previously reported the development of in vivo functional assays for primitive human hematopoietic cells based on their ability to repopulate the bone marrow (BM) of severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) and nonobese diabetic/SCID (NOD/SCID) mice following intravenous transplantation. Accumulated data from gene marking and cell purification experiments indicate that the engrafting cells (…