Blood has long been viewed as a conduit for therapy, stemming from the ancient days of phlebotomy to remove evil humors to the development of successful blood transfusions to replace missing blood components. The identification and characterization of hematopoietic stem cells by Drs. Till and McCulloch revolutionized the field and soon after, non-hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells were characterized from the blood and bone marrow. Some of these cell types and various blood-derived cell lineages are involved in the repair of various types of tissue damage that span the spectrum of medical disorders. The goal of this book is to provide an up-to-date review of the various types of blood-derived cells with regenerative capacity, identify opportunities for intervention by examining specific clinical applications, and recognize the regulatory environment that will encompass future therapies in regenerative medicine.
