The recently established human umbilical cord blood-derived erythroid progenitor (HUDEP) cell lines have equipped red blood cell researchers with valuable in vitro models of erythroid development. Of the three established HUDEP cell lines, HUDEP-2 cells express predominantly adult β-globin and most closely resemble adult erythroid cells. This chapter describes culture protocols for the maintenance and erythroid differentiation of HUDEP-2 cells. Methods to genetically manipulate HUDEP-2 cells using a CRISPR/Cas9 nuclease-based approach are also discussed.
Keywords: CRISPR/Cas9; Erythroid differentiation; Fetal hemoglobin; HUDEP; Hemoglobin switching; Immortalized erythroid cell line.