Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Nara Medical University, 840 Shijo-cho, Kashihara, Nara 634-8521, Japan.
Expert Rev Anticancer Ther. 2010 Feb;10(2):261-70. doi: 10.1586/era.09.184.
Stem cells are defined by their unique characteristics, which include their abilities to self-renew and differentiate. Normal somatic stem cells have been isolated from various tissues such as bone marrow, adipose tissue, mammary glands and the nervous system. They are considered naturally resistant to chemotherapeutic agents because they express high levels of membrane transporter molecules, detoxifying enzymes and DNA repair proteins. Several recent studies have identified the presence of side populations in various cancer tissues, the so-called 'cancer stem cells', which are defined as the counterparts of stem cells in tumor tissues. These cancer stem cells possess stem-like properties, such as self-renewal and differentiation abilities, as well as playing a role in tumor initiation. Most sarcomas, which are thought to originate from mesenchymal stem cells, are highly malignant and approximately 30-40% of them show local and/or distant relapse (metastasis), even in the case of relatively chemosensitive tumors such as osteosarcomas and Ewing sarcomas. Several studies have suggested the presence of stem-like cell populations in sarcomas, based on their tumorigenicity and drug resistance. This review explores the issues of drug resistance of cancer stem cells in sarcomas and the possibilities of targeting cancer stem cells for the future treatment of sarcomas.
干细胞的定义特征包括自我更新和分化的能力。正常的体干细胞已从不同的组织中分离出来，如骨髓、脂肪组织、乳腺和神经系统。由于它们表达高水平的膜转运分子、解毒酶和 DNA 修复蛋白，因此被认为对化疗药物具有天然抗性。最近的几项研究已经在各种癌症组织中发现了侧群的存在，即所谓的“癌症干细胞”，它们被定义为肿瘤组织中干细胞的对应物。这些癌症干细胞具有类似干细胞的特性，如自我更新和分化能力，并在肿瘤起始中发挥作用。大多数肉瘤被认为起源于间充质干细胞，具有高度恶性，其中约 30-40%表现出局部和/或远处复发（转移），即使在相对化疗敏感的肿瘤（如骨肉瘤和尤文肉瘤）中也是如此。一些研究基于肉瘤的致瘤性和耐药性，提出了存在类似干细胞的细胞群体。这篇综述探讨了肉瘤中癌症干细胞耐药性的问题以及针对癌症干细胞的未来治疗肉瘤的可能性。
