iPSC-derived erythroid cells

The generation of erythroid cells from iPSCs has the potential to open avenues of opportunity in blood cell technologies. These include fundamental research, large-scale manufacture of blood products for transfusion medicine, and the creation of disease model systems for the development of novel therapeutics. Before erythroid differentiation, iPSC needs to be under a process of hematopoietic differentiation to obtain the necessary progenitor cells. The optimal system for this is not yet determined although steps have been made to both simplify and increase efficiency. Similarly, erythroid culture systems vary, but in most cases erythroid differentiation is achieved although expansion rates are low and, in particular, enucleation rates are poor and highly variable between studies, the mechanistic details for which are still largely unresolved. Notwithstanding, significant improvements have been made in recent years with adjustments to culture systems and components. Furthermore, iPSC-derived erythroid cells express predominantly fetal and embryonic, with little adult globin although as above approaches to resolve, including coculture and genetic manipulation are promising. Finally, albeit within the described caveats, iPSC technology provides an important approach to creating much needed human model cellular systems for red blood cell diseases, for both study and as drug testing platforms. As improvements to the erythroid potential of iPSC lines continue, the existing potential and application of this technology for such approaches will be revealed.