The discovery of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) ushered in a new era in
stem cell and life science research. Much of the technology and knowledge that has
been gained through HSC studies is now applied in many fields of biology and has
fundamentally changed our understanding of stem cells. For example, cell
identification and purification using cell surface markers, which were developed and
fine-tuned in HSC studies, are now routinely used to investigate the developmental
stages of different cell populations not only in hematopoiesis but also in the
development of other organs and in tumor biology. The therapeutic benefits of HSCs
have long been recognized as bone marrow transplants have saved many lives, and with
an increasing understanding of HSC biology and its translation to the clinic, studies of
HSCs will continue to benefit the health of humans and our curiosity of life in general.
In this chapter, we will briefly describe the discovery, regulation, and therapeutic
application of HSCs. We apologize that many studies are not included here due to the
nature of this review.
Keywords: Gene therapy, Hematopoietic niche, Hematopoietic stem cells,
Transplant.
