Standardization of progenitor cell assay for cord blood banking

Cord blood has proved itself, if correctly stored with rational criteria, an excellent source of stem cells for related and unrelated transplants. It has been recently proven that the factor which predicts the best the speed of engraftment in cord blood transplants in the dose of progenitor cells injected per kg of body weight of the recipient. This result has been obtained thanks to a careful standardization of the neonatal progenitor cell assay. This manuscript describes such a standardization realized as a joined effort by the Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, and the pivotal cord blood bank founded as a feasibility study by the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda at the New York Blood Center.