ABSTRACT
The protocol presented here describes the procedures employed to identify and isolate very small embryonic-like stem cells (VSELs) from human umbilical cord blood (hUCB) derived samples using high- throughput fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) machine. We thoroughly described the recommended steps to ensure their proper and efficient purification. VSELs are being investigated in over 20 laboratories worldwide; yet, this simple protocol was not always successfully transferred and reproduced. Therefore, here we focused on critical steps of great importance for the successful isolation to ensure the purity of the sorted population of VSELs.
