Experimental analysis of ventral blood island hematopoiesis in Xenopus embryonic chimeras.

The frequencies and potentialities of hematopoietic stem cells from 20-hr-old Xenopus embryos were examined by transplanting cytogenetically distinct ventral blood island tissue from diploid to triploid embryos. Thirty-five-day-old larvae were examined for the presence of donor-derived cells in their erythrocyte, thymocyte, and B lymphocyte populations by analyzing DNA content using flow cytometry. These experiments demonstrated that B lymphocytes, as well as erythrocytes and thymocytes, were derived from the ventral blood island. Data obtained by transplanting graded sized pieces of ventral blood island suggested that restricted erythroid precursors were present within the region by 20 hr postfertilization. Differentiation of both B- and T-lymphoid precursors from small pieces of ventral blood island was markedly enhanced when this tissue was grafted onto peripheral areas within the blood island region. Analysis of these data using repopulation statistics suggested that circulating larval erythrocytes of ventral blood island origin were derived from six or seven precursors. Each lobe of the thymus was colonized by three precursors, one of which was ventral blood island derived.