Thy-1 antigen expression by murine hematopoietic precursor cells.

Multipotential lymphohematopoietic stem cells detected by a 12-day spleen colony assay are uniformly Thy-1 positive. As these cells differentiate into stem cells with restricted developmental potential, the antigen is lost. The various restricted progenitor cells differ in their susceptibility to the cytolytic effects of anti-Thy-1 antiserum. Erythroid progenitors appear to lose the antigen more rapidly than any of the others tested, while macrophage precursors retain the antigen until relatively late in their developmental history. These differences in Thy-1 expression permit discrimination among the various progenitors.