Stem Cell and Cancer Institute, Jl. Jend. A. Yani No. 2, Jakarta, Indonesia.
Curr Pharm Biotechnol. 2011 Feb 1;12(2):189-95. doi: 10.2174/138920111794295819.
Stem cells have an important role in cell biology, allowing tissues to be renewed by freshly created cells throughout their lifetime. The specific micro-environment of stem cells is called stem cell niche; this environment influences the development of stem cells from quiescence through stages of differentiation. Recent advance researches have improved the understanding of the cellular and molecular components of the micro-environment--or niche--that regulates stem cells. We point out an important trend to the study of niche activity in breast cancers. Breast cancer has long been known to conserve a heterogeneous population of cells. While the majority of cells that make up tumors are destined to differentiate and eventually stop dividing, only minority populations of cells, termed cancer stem cell, possess extensive self renewal capability. These cancer stem cells possess characteristics of both stem cells and cancer cells. Breast cancer stem cells reversal to breast somatic stem cells offer a new therapy, that not only can stop the spread of breast cancer cells, but also can differentiate breast cancer stem cells into normal breast somatic stem cells. These can replace damaged breast tissue. Nevertheless, the complexity of realizing this therapy approach needs further research.
干细胞在细胞生物学中具有重要作用，使组织能够在其整个生命周期内通过新生成的细胞进行更新。干细胞的特定微环境称为干细胞龛；这种环境影响干细胞从静止期到分化期的发展。最近的研究进展提高了对调节干细胞的微环境（或龛）的细胞和分子成分的理解。我们指出了乳腺癌中龛活性研究的一个重要趋势。长期以来，乳腺癌一直被认为保留了一群异质性细胞。虽然构成肿瘤的大多数细胞注定要分化并最终停止分裂，但只有少数细胞群体，称为癌症干细胞，具有广泛的自我更新能力。这些癌症干细胞具有干细胞和癌细胞的特征。乳腺癌干细胞逆转为乳腺体干细胞提供了一种新的治疗方法，不仅可以阻止乳腺癌细胞的扩散，还可以将乳腺癌干细胞分化为正常的乳腺体干细胞。这些可以替代受损的乳腺组织。然而，实现这种治疗方法的复杂性需要进一步研究。
