Bone marrow innervation regulates cellular retention in the murine haemopoietic system

An anatomical analysis of the innervation of murine femora revealed intimate association of haemopoietic and stromal cells with nerve fibres. The mechanical denervation of these femora resulted in significant mobilization of cells into the peripheral blood within 24h. There was a decrease in femoral cellularity and analysis of the type of cells mobilized also revealed that there was an increase in progenitor cells in the peripheral blood. In non-splenectomized mice these progenitor cells were quickly cleared from the circulation. Chemical sympathectomy of mice with 6-hydroxydopamine resulted in decreased bone marrow cellularity without a change in bone marrow or peripheral blood progenitor cell numbers, nor the sustained rise in peripheral leucocytes observed with whole nerve denervation. These observations argue for selective control of mobilization by the nervous system and also indicate possible control of proliferation within the bone marrow. We conclude that the innervation has an important role in the maintenance of the blood-marrow interface, control of peripheral blood cell numbers, and mobilization of colony forming cells into the periphery.