Human pluripotent and progenitor cells display cell surface cluster differentiation markers CD10, CD13, CD56, and MHC...

Each year millions of people suffer tissue loss or end-stage organ failure. While allogeneic therapies have saved and improved countless lives, they remain imperfect solutions. These therapies are limited by critical donor shortages, long-term morbidity, and mortality. A wide variety of transplants, congenital malformations, elective surgeries, and genetic disorders have the potential for treatment with autologous stem cells as a source of HLA-matched donor tissue. Our current research is aimed at characterizing cell surface cluster differentiation (CD) markers on human progenitor and pluripotent cells to aid in isolating comparatively purified populations of these cells. This study examined human pluripotent and progenitor cells isolated from fetal, mature, and geriatric individuals for the possible presence of 15 CD markers. The response to insulin and dexamethasone revealed that the cell isolates were composed of lineage-committed progenitor cells and lineage-uncommitted pluripotent cells. Flow cytometry showed cell populations positive for CD10, CD13, CD56, and MHC Class-I markers and negative for CD3, CD5, CD7, CD11b, CD14, CD15, CD16, CD19, CD25, CD45, and CD65 markers. Northern analysis revealed that CD13 and CD56 were actively transcribed at time of cell harvest. We report the first identification of CD10, CD13, CD56, and MHC Class-I cell surface antigens on these human cells.