Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, K4/436 CSC 8550, Madison, WI 53705, USA.
Endocr Pathol. 2013 Mar;24(1):1-10. doi: 10.1007/s12022-013-9235-1.
Cancer stem-like cells are a subpopulation of self-renewing cells that are more resistant to chemotherapy and radiation therapy than the other surrounding cancer cells. The cancer stem cell model predicts that only a subset of cancer cells possess the ability to self-renew and produce progenitor cells that can reconstitute and sustain tumor growth. Evidence supporting the existence of cancer stem-like cells in the thyroid, pituitary, and in other endocrine tissues is rapidly accumulating. These cells have been studied using specific biomarkers including: CD133, CD44, Nestin, Nanog, and aldehyde dehydrogenase enzyme. Putative cancer stem-like cells can be studied in vitro using serum-free media supplemented with basic fibroblast growth factor and epidermal growth factor grown in low attachment plates or in extracellular matrix leading to sphere formation in vitro. Cancer stem-like cells can also be separated by fluorescent cell sorting and used for in vitro or in vivo studies. Injection of enriched populations of cancer stem-like cells (also referred to as tumor initiating cells) into immunodeficient mice results in growth of xenografts which express cancer stem-like biomarkers. Human cancer stem-like cells have been identified in thyroid cancer cell lines, in primary thyroid cancers, in normal pituitary, and in pituitary tumors. Other recent studies suggest the existence of stem cells and cancer stem-like cells in endocrine tumors of the gastrointestinal tract, pancreas, lungs, adrenal, parathyroid, and skin. New discoveries in this field may lead to more effective therapies for highly aggressive and lethal endocrine cancers.
癌症干细胞样细胞是一群自我更新的细胞，它们比周围其他癌细胞对化疗和放疗更具抵抗力。癌症干细胞模型预测，只有一小部分癌细胞具有自我更新的能力，并产生祖细胞，可以重建和维持肿瘤生长。越来越多的证据支持甲状腺、垂体和其他内分泌组织中存在癌症干细胞样细胞。这些细胞已经使用特定的生物标志物进行了研究，包括：CD133、CD44、Nestin、Nanog 和醛脱氢酶酶。可以使用无血清培养基在低附着平板上或细胞外基质中培养，补充碱性成纤维细胞生长因子和表皮生长因子，来体外研究推测的癌症干细胞样细胞，从而在体外形成球体。也可以通过荧光细胞分选分离癌症干细胞样细胞，并用于体外或体内研究。将富含癌症干细胞样细胞（也称为肿瘤起始细胞）的群体注入免疫缺陷小鼠中，会导致异种移植物的生长，这些异种移植物表达癌症干细胞样生物标志物。已经在甲状腺癌细胞系、原发性甲状腺癌、正常垂体和垂体肿瘤中鉴定出人类癌症干细胞样细胞。其他最近的研究表明，胃肠道、胰腺、肺、肾上腺、甲状旁腺和皮肤的内分泌肿瘤中存在干细胞和癌症干细胞样细胞。该领域的新发现可能为高度侵袭性和致命的内分泌癌提供更有效的治疗方法。
