Large-scale production and directed induction of functional dendritic cells ex vivo from serum-free expanded human hematopoietic stem cells.

Background: Dendritic cells (DCs) that are derived from hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are the most potent antigen-presenting cells and play a pivotal role in initiating the immune response. Hence, large-scale production and direct induction of functional DCs ex vivo from HSCs are crucial to HSC research and clinical potential, such as vaccines for cancer and immune therapy.

Methods: In a previous study, we developed a serum-free HSC expansion system (SF-HSC medium) to expand large numbers of primitive HSCs ex vivo.