The sialomucin CD34 is expressed on hematopoietic cells and blood vessels during murine development

The processes of angiogenesis and hematopoiesis require a high degree of coordination during embryogenesis. Whereas much is understood about the development of the vascular system in avian embryos, little information has been attained in mammals, predominantly because there are no specific markers for either blood vessels or hematopoietic cells in any developing mammalian system. We have recently shown that murine CD34 (mCD34) is expressed on the vascular endothelium in all organs and tissues of the adult mouse as well as on a small percentage of presumably hematopoietic stem cells in the bone marrow and fetal liver. Here we show that mCD34 is also expressed on the endothelium of blood vessels and on a subset of hematopoietic-like cells throughout murine development. mCD34 is first observed on the yolk sac endothelium of day 7.5 embryos and on a subset of hematopoietic cells within these yolk sacs. mCD34 expression is maintained on vessels and hematopoietic cells in all organs and tissues throughout embryogenesis. In addition, mCD34 is localized on growth conelike filopodial processes that appear at the budding edge of newly sprouted capillaries. Double staining of capillaries for mCD34 and laminin shows that these growth conelike processes seem to be free of laminin, whereas the formed capillaries seem to be coated with this extracellular matrix protein. Analysis of vessels in developing brain shows that these filopodial processes seem to be directed toward the ventricular epithelium, a previously described site of vascular endothelial growth factor synthesis. Finally, we show that the vascular structures of developing murine embryoid bodies also express mCD34. These data suggest that mCD34 is a useful marker for the analysis of the development of the blood vascular system in murine embryos.