Departments of Medicine, Immunobiology and Pediatrics, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
Cancer J. 2011 Sep-Oct;17(5):397-402. doi: 10.1097/PPO.0b013e318233e730.
Increased appreciation of intraclonal heterogeneity of tumors in the past decade has led to the resurgence of the cancer stem cell hypothesis. This hypothesis also has potential implications for immunologic approaches targeting cancer, and it has been suggested that vaccines targeting cancer stem cells may be essential for durable antitumor immunity. Recent studies have provided novel insights into the nature of antigenic targets expressed on putative cancer stem cells and the capacity of both the innate and the adaptive immune system to target these cells, as well as the associated challenges. While the phenotypic properties of cancer stem cells may be plastic, their stemness and capacity for self-renewal may depend on a limited set of genes. Several of these genes overlap with those regulating stemness in embryonal stem cells and are also emerging as potential oncogenes in some cancers. Immunologic approaches targeting stemness-associated pathways in cancer may provide an important strategy for the prevention of diverse cancers, including those occurring in the context of regenerative therapies.
在过去十年中，人们对肿瘤克隆内异质性的认识不断提高，这导致了癌症干细胞假说的复兴。这一假说也可能对针对癌症的免疫方法产生影响，有人认为针对癌症干细胞的疫苗对于持久的抗肿瘤免疫可能是必不可少的。最近的研究为潜在的癌症干细胞上表达的抗原靶标的性质以及先天和适应性免疫系统靶向这些细胞的能力提供了新的见解，以及相关的挑战。虽然癌症干细胞的表型特性可能具有可塑性，但它们的干细胞特性和自我更新能力可能取决于有限的一组基因。其中一些基因与胚胎干细胞中调节干细胞特性的基因重叠，并且也作为一些癌症中的潜在致癌基因出现。针对癌症中与干细胞特性相关的途径的免疫方法可能为预防多种癌症提供一种重要策略，包括在再生治疗背景下发生的癌症。
