Abstract SWAP-70 originally identified as a signaling protein exclusively expressed in B-cells has been recently described in other cells of the hematopoietic system, such as mast cells and dendritic cells. Here we describe a novel role of SWAP-70 in hematopoiesis, specifically in regulation of erythropoiesis. SWAP-70 protein expression is detected at the stage of the hematopoietic stem cell (HSC). Its expression persists throughout several stages of multipotent and myeloid progenitors. In erythroid development SWAP-70 is found from early committed to erythroid lineage precursors, burst-forming unit erythroid (BFU-E) and colony-forming unit erythroid (CFU-E); however its expression declines with erythroid maturation and it is lastly detectable at the basophilic erythroblast stage. The protein’s deficiency leads to 3-fold increase in HSC numbers in the bone marrow (BM). The lack of SWAP-70 does not affect intermediate myeloid progenitors and the first erythroid committed progenitor, BFU-E. Hematopoietic tissues (BM and spleen) of Swap-70-/- mice carry 2-times less CFU-Es, thus SWAP-70 appears to be important at this stage. Swap-70-/- mice have the same frequencies of later erythroid progenitors, Ter-119+ erythroblasts, in the BM but fewer in the spleen. BM and splenic Ter-119+ erythroid Swap-70-/- compartment (basophilic, polychromatic and orthochromatic erythroblasts) exhibit an altered profile that is characterized by the delayed maturation of cells at the polychromatic stage. SWAP-70 deficiency is not critical for steady state erythropoiesis and does not influence blood homeostasis. Yet SWAP-70 is essential for proper stress response in conditions of anemia. Swap-70-/- mice have normal steady state hematocrite level but fail to restore it after induced anemia, thus showing sluggish blunted response to erythropoietic stress. In resting conditions Swap-70-/- early erythroid progenitors (CFU-Es) exhibit aberrant preactivation of the integrin VLA-4, which supports homotypic and heterotypic interaction within the erythroid niche, and are hyperadhesive to fibronectin. Similarly, Swap-70-/- basophilic erythroblasts are hyperadhesive to splenic tissue. Based on our data and our initial observations we propose a novel function of SWAP-70 in the c-kit signaling pathway and integrin-mediated, i.e. VLA-4, interactions that are important for HSC and erythroid progenitor maintanence and differentiation. Better understanding of mechanisms governing red blood cell development and homeostasis is of high relevance in the context of treatment of anemia, a very common blood disorder, which leads to a wide range of clinical complications and is the most common cancer-associated morbidity.