Human short-term repopulating stem cells are efficiently detected following intrafemoral transplantation into NOD/SCID recipients depleted of CD122+ cells

The nonobese diabetic/severe combined immune deficiency (NOD/SCID) xenotransplantation model has emerged as a widely used assay for human hematopoietic stem cells; however, barriers still exist that limit engraftment. We previously identified a short-term SCID-repopulating cell (SRC) following direct intrafemoral injection into NOD/SCID mice, whereas others characterized similar SRCs using NOD/SCID mice depleted of natural killer (NK) cell activity. To determine the model that most efficiently detects short-term SRCs, we compared human engraftment in 6 different xenotransplantation models: NOD/SCID-β2-microglobulin-null mice, anti-CD122 (interleukin-2 receptor β [IL-2Rβ])–treated or unmanipulated NOD/SCID mice, each given transplants by intravenous or intrafemoral injection. Human cell engraftment was highest in intrafemorally injected anti-CD122–treated NOD/SCID mice compared to all other groups at 2 and 6 weeks after transplantation. These modifications to the SRC assay provide improved detection of human stem cells and demonstrate that CD122+ cells provide barriers to stem cell engraftment, a finding with potential clinical relevance.