Fractionation of feline bone marrow with the soybean agglutinin lectin yields populations enriched for erythroid and myeloid elements: transplantation of soybean agglutinin-negative cells into lethally irradiated recipients

• Published in: Transplantation Vol. 64; no. 3; p. 510
• Main Authors: Gengozian, N, Reyes, L, Pu, R, Homer, B L, Bova, F J, Yamamoto, J K
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 15.08.1997
• Subjects: Animals; Bone Marrow - radiation effects; Bone Marrow Cells; Bone Marrow Transplantation; Cats; Cell Fractionation; Cell Transplantation; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Erythroid Precursor Cells - cytology; Erythroid Precursor Cells - drug effects; Female; Glycine max - chemistry; Hematopoietic Stem Cells - cytology; Hematopoietic Stem Cells - drug effects; Lectins; Male; Plant Lectins; Soybean Proteins; Transplantation, Autologous - physiology; Whole-Body Irradiation
• ISSN: 0041-1337
• DOI: 10.1097/00007890-199708150-00022

Feline bone marrow cells treated with the soybean agglutinin (SBA) lectin are separated into two populations, the agglutinated SBA(+) fraction containing predominantly cells of myeloid origin and the nonagglutinated SBA(-) fraction consisting of cells primarily of the erythroid lineage. FACScan analyses revealed a clear distinction of the cells based on their light scattering properties, i.e., large cells and cells with high granularity were found in the SBA(+) fraction, whereas cells having a low forward light scatter and side light scatter were found in the SBA(-) fraction. Colony-forming assays showed colony-forming unit-granulocyte/monocyte (CFU-GM) cells to have a strong affinity for SBA because these were found almost entirely in the SBA(+) fraction; in contrast, burst-forming unit-erythroid (BFU-E)-forming cells were concentrated in the SBA(-) fraction. When the marrow was fractionated by counterflow centrifugal elutriation (CCE), a differential binding to SBA among the CFU-GM forming cells was found. The SBA(-) fractions of cells collected at 21 and 25 ml/min contained primarily BFU-E forming cells, similar to that observed with whole marrow; the later CCE fractions, those collected at 32 ml/min and the rotor off fraction, when treated with SBA showed a small but significant number of CFU-GM cells in the SBA(-) fraction. T lymphocytes were found predominantly in the SBA(+) fractions of whole bone marrow and the CCE fractions. Successful autologous marrow transplants were performed with the early CCE SBA(-) fractions. The latter cells were used for our initial transplant attempts because ongoing studies in our laboratory had shown these cells to be free of any viral-containing cells when the marrow had been obtained from animals infected with the feline immunodeficiency virus. In summary, although SBA treatment of feline marrow yields a marked separation of CFU-GM and BFU-E progenitors, select CCE SBA(-) fractions contain stem cells capable of providing hematopoietic reconstitution of lethally irradiated animals.