HDC and stroma increase the number of NK cells generated from CD34+ HPCs. Five hundred CD34+ cells were plated per well in 24-well cell culture plates. Where indicated, plates were previously coated with stromal cells (EL08.1D2) and irradiated (30 Gy). Where indicated, HDC (10−6M) was added to the starting, as well as, refreshing medium (added weekly). Average number of viable cells/well (of 3 replicates) after (A) 14, (B) 21, and (C) 28 days of culture. Percentage of CD56+ cells (by FACS) after (D) 14, (E) 21, and (F) 28 days. Horizontal bars represent the means of 12 separate donors in various conditions. Groups showing significant differences in comparison with the cytokines-alone group are indicated by asterisks (***P < .001, **P = .001-.01, and *P = .01-.05), as determined by repeated-measures analysis of variance on log-transformed values with Bonferroni posttest.
