Donor origin of multipotent adult progenitor cells in radiation chimeras

Multipotent adult progenitor cells (MAPCs) are bone marrow-derived stem cells that have extensive in vitro expansion capacity and can differentiate in vivo and in vitro into tissue cells of all 3 germinal layers: ectoderm, mesoderm, and endoderm. The origin of MAPCs within bone marrow is unknown. MAPCs are believed to be derived from the bone marrow stroma compartment as they are isolated within the adherent cell component. Numerous studies of bone marrow chimeras in the human and the mouse point to a host origin of bone marrow stromal cells. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), which coexist with stromal cells, have also been proven to be of host origin after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation in numerous studies. We report here that following syngeneic bone marrow transplants into lethally irradiated C57BL6 mice, MAPCs are of donor origin.