Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 7, 2026
Identification and Analysis of Mouse Erythroid Progenitors using the CD71/TER119 Flow-cytometric Assay
Published on: August 5, 2011
Expression profiling of circulating non-red blood cells in embryonic blood
Brendan A S McIntyre1, Cantas Alev, Hiroshi Tarui
1Laboratory for Early Embryogenesis, RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology, Kobe, Hyogo 650-0047, Japan. mcintyre@cdb.riken.jp
Background:
In addition to erythrocytes, embryonic blood contains other differentiated cell lineages and potential progenitor or stem cells homed to changing niches as the embryo develops. Using chicken as a model system, we have isolated an enriched pool of circulating non red blood cells (nRBCs) from E4 and E6 embryos; a transition period when definitive hematopoietic lineages are being specified in the peri-aortic region.
Results:
Transcriptome analysis of both nRBC and RBC enriched populations was performed using chicken Affymetrix gene expression arrays. Comparison of transcript profiles of these two populations, with verification by RT-PCR, reveals in nRBCs an expression signature indicative of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) and progenitor cells of myeloid and lymphoid lineages, as well as a number of previously undescribed genes possibly involved in progenitor and stem cell maintenance.
Conclusion:
This data indicates that early circulating embryonic blood contains a full array of hematopoietic progenitors and stem cells. Future studies on their heterogeneity and differentiation potentials may provide a useful alternative to ES cells and perinatal blood.
