Patent ID: 7101708

Claim:
A method for the preparation of a cell composition consisting essentially of human hematopoietic CD38 −/low CXCR4 + stem cells capable of migrating in response to stromal-derived factor 1 (SDF-1), said hematopoietic CD38 −/low CXCR4 + stem cells having the capacity of migrating to, and of engraftment and repopulation of, the bone marrow in a host, comprising: stimulating CD38 −/low CXCR4 −/low human stem cells for up to five days with a suitable agent capable of converting CD38 −/low CXCR4 −/low into CD38 −/low CXCR4 + stem cells, thus converting the CD38 −/low CXCR4 −/low into CD38 −/low CXCR4 + stem cells, and wherein said suitable agent is selected from the group consisting of a lectin, a cytokine, at least one type of mammalian stromal cells, and mixtures thereof, said agent being capable of converting CD38 −/low CXCR4 −/low into CD38 −/low CXCR4 + stem cells, and sorting out those CD38 −/low CXCR4 + human stem cells that migrate in response to SDF-1.