Analysis of the hematopoietic potential of muscle-derived cells in mice.

Cells in murine muscle have been reported to differentiate into hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells and thus repopulate the hematopoietic system of an irradiated animal. This activity was attributed to muscle stem cells. We used an in vitro and in vivo approach to identify the hematopoietic repopulating activity found in muscle tissue of mice by antibody staining and cell sorting. We confirmed existence of a hematopoietic repopulating cell in muscle tissue, but the data strongly suggest that repopulation is due not to muscle stem cells but to hematopoietic cells present in muscle tissue. Unexpectedly, the blood-forming cells were enriched in muscle relative to their frequency in peripheral blood.