Figure 2.

The stochastic model for cell fate determination. A possible sequence of events or “family tree” in which a single progenitor gives rise to a hematopoietic colony containing a mixture of differentiated and undifferentiated cells. “Birth” (self-renewal, black circles) or “death” (differentiation, white circles) occur as probabilistic events (11). The probability P or “1-P” for each outcome is the same at each generation.