The effect of stem cell mobilisation with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor on the morphology of the haematopoietic organs in mice.

The cellular mobilisation of mice with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) results in an egress of haematopoietic stem/progenitor cells from the bone marrow and an increase in their level in the peripheral blood. While the mobilisation process with different agents is widely studied, little is known about the morphology of the murine haematopoietic organs during the mobilisation. The purpose of this study was to examine the morphology of the bone marrow, spleen and liver in mice mobilised with G-CSF. To address this issue mice were injected subcutaneously with G-CSF for 6 consecutive days. Morphological analysis revealed an increase in the number of mature neutrophils close to the wall of sinusoids in the bone marrow as well as hypertrophy of the red pulp in the spleen. At the same time no morphological changes were noticed in the livers of G-CSF-mobilised mice. In conclusion, G-CSF induces discrete ultrastructural changes in the bone marrow, which intensify the transendothelial traverse of haematopoietic stem and progenitor cells from it. The changes in the spleen are related to repopulation of this organ by mobilised early haematopoietic cells circulating in the peripheral blood. We also noticed that the process of migration of haematopoietic cells from the bone marrow into the peripheral blood began on day 2 and was most pronounced on day 4 after stimulation with G-CSF.