Endothelial cells play a critical role in supporting postnatal hematopoiesis in the bone marrow. Unique endothelial cells, together with various perivascular cells, form different types of vascular structures, constructing a vast microvascular delivery and trafficking network for blood cells, oxygen, and nutrition. These blood vessels build distinct hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell niches, which offer not only sites of residence for blood cells but also indispensable signals directing HSPC homing, self-renewal, and multilineage differentiation. Deep insight into the structure and function of the BM vasculature niche and its participation in hematopoiesis is necessary to develop advanced strategies for the reconstitution of hematopoiesis.
Keywords: Blood vessel; Cytokines; Endothelial cells; Hematopoiesis; Stromal cells.
© 2021. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.