Cellular subclasses in human leukemic hemopoiesis.

Cellular organization and communication in leukemic hemopoiesis may be compared with its counterpart in normal hemopoiesis. Results obtained using cell culture methods have provided some support for the view that leukemic hemopoiesis, like normla hemopoiesis, may involve 3 levels of differentiation: leukemic stem cells, committed leukemic progenitors, and more mature cells. Evidence is also beginning to emerge that leukemic populations may be regulated by messages from the environment in a manner analogous to normal hemopoiesis. The apparent similarities between leukemic and normal hemopoiesis raise, the possibility that the target cell for leukemic transformation is the normal pluripotent stem cell. The development of culture methods for the production of leukovirus-like particles from human leukemic cells provides a possible first step toward the direct identification of leukemic target cells.