This antibody reacts with the CD34 antigen, a single-chain transmembrane glycoprotein. The antigen is associated with human hematopoietic progenitor cells and is a differentiation stage–specific leucocyte antigen.
The CD34 antigen is present on immature hematopoietic precursor cells and all hematopoietic colony-forming cells in bone marrow and blood, including unipotent and pluripotent progenitors. The CD34 antigen is present on early myeloid cells that express the CD33 antigen but lack the CD14 and CD15 antigens and on early erythroid cells that express the CD71 antigen and dimly express the CD45 antigen. The CD34 antigen is also found on capillary endothelial cells and approximately 1% of human thymocytes. Normal peripheral blood lymphocytes, monocytes, granulocytes, and platelets do not express the CD34 antigen.