Department of Pathology, Shanghai Cancer Center, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
World J Gastroenterol. 2013 May 7;19(17):2603-11. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i17.2603.
Colorectal cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors worldwide. A model of cancer development involving cancer stem cells has been put forward because it provides a possible explanation of tumor hierarchy. Cancer stem cells are characterized by their proliferation, tumorigenesis, differentiation, and self-renewal capacities, and chemoradiotherapy resistance. Due to the role of cancer stem cells in tumor initiation and treatment failure, studies of cancer stem cell markers, such as CD133, have been of great interest. CD133, a five-transmembrane glycoprotein, is widely used as a marker to identify and isolate colorectal cancer stem cells. This marker has been investigated to better understand the characteristics and functions of cancer stem cells. Moreover, it can also be used to predict tumor progression, patient survival, chemoradiotherapy resistance and other clinical parameters. In this review, we discuss the use of CD133 in the identification of colorectal cancer stem cell, which is currently controversial. Although the function of CD133 is as yet unclear, we have discussed several possible functions and associated mechanisms that may partially explain the role of CD133 in colorectal cancers. In addition, we focus on the prognostic value of CD133 in colorectal cancers. Finally, we predict that CD133 may be used as a possible target for colorectal cancer treatment.
结直肠癌是全球最常见的恶性肿瘤之一。由于肿瘤的等级结构提供了一种可能的解释，因此提出了涉及癌症干细胞的癌症发展模型。癌症干细胞的特征是具有增殖、致瘤性、分化和自我更新能力以及化疗和放疗耐药性。由于癌症干细胞在肿瘤起始和治疗失败中的作用，对癌症干细胞标志物（如 CD133）的研究引起了极大的兴趣。CD133 是一种五跨膜糖蛋白，广泛用作鉴定和分离结直肠癌细胞干细胞的标志物。研究该标志物有助于更好地了解癌症干细胞的特征和功能。此外，它还可以用于预测肿瘤进展、患者生存、化疗和放疗耐药性以及其他临床参数。在这篇综述中，我们讨论了 CD133 在鉴定结直肠癌细胞干细胞中的应用，目前这方面存在争议。虽然 CD133 的功能尚不清楚，但我们已经讨论了几种可能的功能及其相关机制，这些机制可能部分解释了 CD133 在结直肠癌中的作用。此外，我们还关注了 CD133 在结直肠癌中的预后价值。最后，我们预测 CD133 可能被用作结直肠癌治疗的一个可能靶点。
