Bone marrow is a complex cellular arrangement in which hematopoietic stem and precursor cells with hematopoietic differentiation potential exist in close proximity to the heterogeneous group of nonhematopoietic (NH) stem cells with nonhematopoietic differentiation potential.

In early 1970, Friedenstein et al. first described the ability of specific cells from bone marrow to slowly proliferate and to be highly adhesive to plastic. These cells were named after their spindlelike morphologic appearance, colony-forming–unit fibroblasts (CFU-Fs) and showed nonhematopoietic differentiation potential. Starting with unseparated bone marrow cells from iliac crest aspirations of healthy donors, an average of 140 CFU-Fs per 10⁷ cells was determined. These cells showed a mesodermal plasticity, i.e. osteogenic, adipogenic and chondrogenic differentiation potential.

The CFU-F progeny was designated in 1997, when proliferated in vitro, as marrow stromal fibroblasts (MSFs).  However, several additional terms were also used for this heterogeneous cell population, such as mesenchymal stem cells, multipotent stromal cells, mesodermal stem cells or marrow stromal cells (all abbreviated as MSCs), mesenchymal progenitor cells (MPCs), multipotent adult progenitor cells (MAPCs), stromal precursors, bone marrow stromal stem cells (BMSSCs) or bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs). This variety arises from the fact that cultures of CFU-Fs are not homogeneous, but consist of a mixture of progenitor cells with differing plasticities. Taking this diversity into account, the ISCT (International Society for Cell Therapy) consortium suggested to use the term mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) for cells from bone marrow and other tissues with  nonhematopoietic differentiation potential to adipocytes, chondrocytes, and osteoblasts.

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Workflow for human mesenchymal stem or stromal cells (MSCs)

Stem Cells by Miltenyi Biotec