Purification of hematopoietic stem cells from bone marrow

Lifelong production of blood cells is sustained by hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) which reside at a very low frequency within the bone marrow (BM). The use of flow cytometry has been critical in establishing methods to isolate and characterize HSCs and their progenitors. For more than 30 years, researchers have uncovered many novel markers that when used in combination significantly enhance the purification of HSCs from murine and human bone marrow. Here, we review the phenotypic markers and strategies used to purify HSCs.