Search results for " stemness"

NOTCH3 expression is linked to breast cancer seeding and distant metastasis

2018

Background Development of distant metastases involves a complex multistep biological process termed the invasion-metastasis cascade, which includes dissemination of cancer cells from the primary tumor to secondary organs. NOTCH developmental signaling plays a critical role in promoting epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, tumor stemness, and metastasis. Although all four NOTCH receptors show oncogenic properties, the unique role of each of these receptors in the sequential stepwise events that typify the invasion-metastasis cascade remains elusive. Methods We have established metastatic xenografts expressing high endogenous levels of NOTCH3 using estrogen receptor alpha-positive (ERα+) MCF…

Telomerase and pluripotency factors jointly regulate stemness in pancreatic cancer stem cells

2021

© 2021 by the authors.

Innovative therapy, monoclonal antibodies, and beyond: Highlights from the eighth annual meeting

2018

The eighth annual conference of “Innovative therapy, monoclonal antibodies, and beyond” was held in Milan on Jan. 26, 2018, and hosted by Fondazione IRCCS–Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori (Fondazione IRCCS INT). The conference was divided into two main scientific sessions, of i) pre-clinical assays and novel biotargets, and ii) clinical translation, as well as a third session of presentations from young investigators, which focused on recent achievements within Fondazione IRCCS INT on immunotherapy and targeted therapies. Presentations in the first session addressed the issue of cancer immunotherapy activity with respect to tumor heterogeneity, with key topics addressing: 1) tumor heterogeneit…

Non-coding RNAs Functioning in Colorectal Cancer Stem Cells

2016

In recent years, the hypothesis of the presence of tumor-initiating cancer stem cells (CSCs) has received a considerable support. This model suggested the existence of CSCs which, thanks to their self-renewal properties, are able to drive the expansion and the maintenance of malignant cell populations with invasive and metastatic potential in cancer. Increasing evidence showed the ability of such cells to acquire self-renewal, multipotency, angiogenic potential, immune evasion, symmetrical and asymmetrical divisions which, along with the presence of several DNA repair mechanisms, further enhance their oncogenic potential making them highly resistant to common anticancer treatments. The main…

MicroRNAs in colorectal cancer stem cells: new regulators of cancer stemness?

2012

Recently, the hypothesis that colorectal tumors originate from a subpopulation of cells called ‘cancer stem cells' (CSCs) or tumor-initiating cells, which exhibit stem-like features, has been confirmed experimentally in various human cancers. Several studies have confirmed the existence of colorectal CSCs (CRCSCs) and have demonstrated that this rare cell population can be isolated by the expression of specific cell surface biomarkers. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small non-coding RNAs, which are crucial for post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression and participate in a wide variety of biological functions, including development, cell proliferation, differentiation, metabolism…

STUDY ON P53 GAIN OF FUNCTION IN 3AB-OS CANCER STEM CELLS

CD133 as a target for colon cancer.

2012

INTRODUCTION: Recent evidence based on cancer stem cell (CSC) models, is boosting the progress of translational research and providing relevant clinical implications in many tumour types, including colorectal cancer. The current failure of standard therapies is attributed to a small fraction of the primary cell population with stem-like characteristics, such as self-renewal and differentiation. Identification of CSCs is based on two different criteria of selection: stemness-selective conditions and direct isolation based on putative stem cell markers expression. CD133, a transmembrane glycoprotein, was associated with tumor-initiating cells derived from several histological variants of tumo…

Isolation, characterization, differentiative properties of human mesenchymal stem cells isolated from the sub-endocardial layer of post-infarct chron…

2009

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) are pluripotent cells which reside in several adult organs, including heart, even if heart regeneration in vivo is still a poorly comprised phenomenon. Contrasting literature reports suggest that several efforts should be made to better characterize resident or migrating MSC populations (for both markers expression and immunogenic potential) prior to their effective use for regenerative medicine applications in heart diseases. We developed a new protocol to obtain human sub-endocardial MSC (HSE-MSC) from post-infarct hearts explanted from chronic heart failure (CHF) patients undergoing heart transplantation. We characterized HSE-MSC by immunocytochemistry (ICC) …

An epistatic mini-circuitry between the transcription factors Snail and HNF4α controls liver stem cell and hepatocyte features exhorting opposite reg…

2011

Preservation of the epithelial state involves the stable repression of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition program, whereas maintenance of the stem compartment requires the inhibition of differentiation processes. A simple and direct molecular mini-circuitry between master elements of these biological processes might provide the best device to keep balanced such complex phenomena. In this work, we show that in hepatic stem cell Snail, a transcriptional repressor of the hepatocyte differentiation master gene HNF4α, directly represses the expression of the epithelial microRNAs (miRs)-200c and-34a, which in turn target several stem cell genes. Notably, in differentiated hepatocytes HNF4α, p…

Targeting lysine-specific demethylase 1 (KDM1A/LSD1) impairs colorectal cancer tumorigenesis by affecting cancer cells stemness, motility, and differ…

2023

: Among all cancers, colorectal cancer (CRC) is the 3rd most common and the 2nd leading cause of death worldwide. New therapeutic strategies are required to target cancer stem cells (CSCs), a subset of tumor cells highly resistant to present-day therapy and responsible for tumor relapse. CSCs display dynamic genetic and epigenetic alterations that allow quick adaptations to perturbations. Lysine-specific histone demethylase 1A (KDM1A also known as LSD1), a FAD-dependent H3K4me1/2 and H3K9me1/2 demethylase, was found to be upregulated in several tumors and associated with a poor prognosis due to its ability to maintain CSCs staminal features. Here, we explored the potential role of KDM1A tar…