By mimicking embryonic development of the hematopoietic system, we have developed an optimized in vitro differentiation protocol for the generation of precursors of hematopoietic lineages and primitive hematopoietic cells from human embryonic stem cells (ESC) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). Factors such as cytokines, extra cellular matrix components, and small molecules as well as the temporal association and concentration of these factors were tested on seven different human ESC and iPSC lines. We report the differentiation of up to 84% human CD45+ cells (average 41% ± 16%, from seven pluripotent lines) from the differentiation culture, including significant numbers of primitive CD45+/CD341 and CD45+/CD341/CD38− hematopoietic progenitors. Moreover, the numbers of hematopoietic progenitor cells generated, as measured by colony forming unit assays, were comparable to numbers obtained from fresh umbilical cord blood mononuclear cell isolates on a per CD45+ cell basis. Our approach demonstrates highly efficient generation of multipotent hematopoietic progenitors with among the highest efficiencies reported to date (CD45+/CD341) using a single standardized differentiation protocol on several human ESC and iPSC lines. Our data add to the cumulating evidence for the existence of an in vitro derived precursor to the hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) with limited engrafting ability in transplanted mice but with multipotent hematopoietic potential. Because this protocol efficiently expands the preblood precursors and hematopoietic progenitors, it is ideal for testing novel factors for the generation and expansion of definitive HSCs with long-term repopulating ability.

During development, hematopoietic cells originate from endothelium in a process known as endothelial-to-hematopoietic transition (EHT). To study human EHT, we coupled flow cytometry and single-cell transcriptional analyses of human pluripotent stem cell-derived CD34 cells. The resulting transcriptional hierarchy showed a continuum of endothelial and hematopoietic signatures. At the interface of these two signatures, a unique group of cells displayed both an endothelial signature and high levels of key hematopoietic stem cell-associated genes. This interphase group was validated via sort and subculture as an immediate precursor to hematopoietic cells. Differential expression analyses further divided this population into subgroups, which, upon subculture, showed distinct hematopoietic lineage differentiation potentials. We therefore propose that immediate precursors to hematopoietic cells already have their hematopoietic lineage restrictions defined prior to complete downregulation of the endothelial signature. These findings increase our understanding of the processes of de novo hematopoietic cell generation in the human developmental context.

The murine embryonal stem (ES) cell virus (MESV) can express transgenes from the long terminal repeat (LTR) promoter/enhancer in undifferentiated ES

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