McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Department of Pathology, University of Pittsburgh Medical School, 450 Technology Drive, Suite 300, Pittsburgh, PA 15219, USA.
Stem Cell Res Ther. 2010 May 20;1(2):13. doi: 10.1186/scrt13.
Stem cells maintain homeostasis in adult tissues via self-renewal and generation of terminally differentiated cells. Alterations in this intricate balance can result in disease. It has become increasingly evident that cancer can be initiated at the level of stem cells. Therefore, understanding what causes stem cells to become cancerous may lead to new therapeutic approaches. Multiple signaling pathways ultimately affect stem cell survival and proliferation, thus maintaining homeostasis in the gut. Changes in these pathways could perturb normal stem cell behavior, leading to cancerous stem cells. In addition, cancerous stem cells show resistance to current therapies and may lead to a dangerous selection process resulting in recurrence and metastasis. Genomic instability, the driving force of mutation and resistance, may give cancerous stem cells an adaptive advantage, especially when subjected to cancer therapies. Targeting the unique characteristics of cancerous stem cells to promote either terminal differentiation or destruction would effectively eradicate cancer and improve patient care and survival.
干细胞通过自我更新和生成终末分化细胞来维持成人组织中的内稳态。这种复杂平衡的改变可能导致疾病。越来越明显的是，癌症可以在干细胞水平上引发。因此，了解导致干细胞癌变的原因可能会带来新的治疗方法。多种信号通路最终影响干细胞的存活和增殖，从而维持肠道内的稳态。这些途径的变化可能会扰乱正常的干细胞行为，导致癌变的干细胞。此外，癌变的干细胞对当前的治疗方法具有抵抗力，并且可能导致导致复发和转移的危险选择过程。基因组不稳定性是突变和耐药性的驱动力，可能使癌变的干细胞具有适应性优势，尤其是在接受癌症治疗时。针对癌变干细胞的独特特征，促进其终末分化或破坏，将有效地根除癌症，并改善患者的护理和生存。
