K. Mackarehtschian et al., TARGETED DISRUPTION OF THE FLK2 FLT3 GENE LEADS TO DEFICIENCIES IN PRIMITIVE HEMATOPOIETIC PROGENITORS/, Immunity, 3(1), 1995, pp. 147-161
The flk2 receptor tyrosine kinase has been implicated in hematopoietic
development. Mice deficient in flk2 were generated. Mutants developed
into healthy adults with normal mature hematopoietic populations. How
ever, they possessed specific deficiencies in primitive B lymphoid pro
genitors, Bone marrow transplantation experiments revealed a further d
eficiency in T cell and myeloid reconstitution by mutant stem cells. M
ice deficient for both c-kit and flk2 exhibited a more severe phenotyp
e characterized by large overall decreases in hematopoietic cell numbe
rs, further reductions in the relative frequencies of lymphoid progeni
tors, and a postnatal lethality. Taken together, the data suggest that
flk2 plays a role both in multipotent stem cells and in lymphoid diff
erentiation.