Potency Assays for Measuring the Engraftment Potential of HSPCs

The transplantation of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) obtained from bone marrow (BM), mobilized peripheral blood (MPB) and umbilical cord blood (CB) has become an established therapy to regenerate the immuno-hematopoietic system in cancer patients following ablative chemo/radiotherapy and in patients with non-malignant hematological disorders. An important question in this field is how to measure the number of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) in a cellular product prior to its infusion. This information can be used to assist in graft selection and, ideally, to prospectively predict the likelihood of successful engraftment.