How do I perform hematopoietic progenitor cell selection?

Graft-versus-host disease remains the most important source of morbidity and mortality associated with allogeneic stem cell transplantation. The implementation of hematopoietic progenitor cell (HPC) selection is employed by some stem cell processing facilities to mitigate this complication. Current cell selection methods include reducing the number of unwanted T cells (negative selection) and/or enriching CD34+ hematopoietic stem/progenitors (positive selection) using immunomagnetic beads subjected to magnetic fields within columns to separate out targeted cells. Unwanted side effects of cell selection as a result of T-cell reduction are primary graft failure, increased infection rates, delayed immune reconstitution, possible disease relapse, and posttransplant lymphoproliferative disease. The Miltenyi CliniMACS cell isolation system is the only device currently approved for clinical use by the Food and Drug Administration. It uses magnetic microbeads conjugated with a high-affinity anti-CD34 monoclonal antibody capable of binding to HPCs in marrow, peripheral blood, or umbilical cord blood products. The system results in significantly improved CD34+ cell recoveries (50%-100%) and consistent 3-log CD3+ T-cell reductions compared to previous generations of CD34+ cell selection procedures. In this article, the CliniMACS procedure is described in greater detail and the authors provide useful insight into modifications of the system. Successful implementation of cell selection procedures can have a significant positive clinical effect by greatly increasing the pool of donors for recipients requiring transplants. However, before a program implements cell selection techniques, it is important to consider the time and financial resources required to properly and safely perform these procedures.