Chuck Chan dedicated his life to unraveling the mysteries of bone marrow niches and was the first to define and characterize a mouse and human skeletal stem cell lineage (SSC) tree. He was a brilliant scientist whose pioneering work in stem cell research has left an indelible mark on the field. His journey into stem cell research was inspired by the groundbreaking studies of Irv Weissman’s lab describing hematopoiesis-supporting stroma and hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) as the origin of all blood and immune cells. As a result of this, Chuck identified the necessity for the use of several markers capable of distinguishing between different subsets of skeletal cells.1,2,3 His innovative spirit led him to pioneer methods and assays for isolating, characterizing, and functionally probing the cells responsible for bone tissue generation and maintenance.4,5,6 Fittingly, the combination of cell surface markers used to purify SSCs via flow cytometry have commonly become known as the “Chan markers” in the bone research community. Despite his groundbreaking achievements, Chuck’s motivation remained rooted in understanding the intricate interplay between stem cells and hematopoietic cell populations to influence blood and immune cell production in health and disease.
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