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Phenotypically well-characterized hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) still represent a heterogeneous pool of primitive cells regarding to their functionality. In particular, different lineage potential of HSCs have been considered as one of key features of the HSC heterogeneity. The lineage output of HSCs is often coupled with cell cycle status or long-term reconstitution potential, however molecular mechanisms of the mutuality are unclear and other type of the regulation may exist. In addition, prospective isolation of such HSCs biased towards specific lineage(s) is still problematic, as many of categorizations highly rely on retrospective information, e.g. transplantation assay. Although several markers have been reported to be able to subdivide HSCs into subcategories, exploration of additional markers will allow us understanding further molecular mechanisms of HSC regulations including activation and lineage choice.

No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.