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Abstract
The Ikaros gene encodes a family of early hematopoietic- and lymphocyte-restricted
transcription factors. Mice homozygous for a germline mutation in the Ikaros DNA-binding
domain lack not only T and B lymphocytes and natural killer cells but also their earliest
defined progenitors. In contrast, the erythroid and myeloid lineages were intact in
these mutant mice. We propose that Ikaros promotes differentiation of pluripotential
hematopoietic stem cell(s) into the lymphocyte pathways. In the absence of a functional
Ikaros gene, these stem cells are exclusively diverted into the erythroid and myeloid
lineages.