Cancer Stem Cell News Volume 7.01 | Jan 10 2018

TOP STORY

Single Cell Analysis Reveals Cancer Stem Cell Heterogeneity in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Scientists provided evidence that hepatic CSCs at the single-cell level are phenotypically, functionally and transcriptionally heterogeneous. They found that different CSC subpopulations contain distinct molecular signatures. [Hepatology] Abstract

(Ranked by impact factor of the journal)

Therapy-Educated Mesenchymal Stem Cells Enrich for Tumor Initiating Cells

Investigators showed that chemotherapy-educated mesenchymal stem cells promote therapy resistance via crosstalk with tumor-initiating cells, a resistant tumor cell subset that initiates tumorigenesis and metastasis. [Cancer Res] Abstract

Stabilization of NF-κB-Inducing Kinase Suppresses MLL-AF9-Induced Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Canonical nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) signaling is constitutively activated in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) stem cells and is required for maintenance of the self-renewal of leukemia stem cells. Scientists report that stabilization of NF-κB-inducing kinase suppresses AML. Mechanistically, stabilization of NF-κB-inducing kinase activated NF-κB non-canonical signaling and repressed NF-κB canonical signaling. [Cell Rep] Full Article | Graphical Abstract

miR-145 Antagonizes SNAI1-Mediated Stemness and Radiation Resistance in Colorectal Cancer

The authors hypothesized that miR-145 represents a therapeutic target to reverse SNAI1-mediated stemness and radiation resistance. Stable expression of SNAI1 in DLD1 and HCT116 cells increased expression of Nanog and decreased miR-145 expression compared to control cells. [Mol Ther] Abstract

The Epigenetically Regulated miR-494 Associates with Stem-Cell Phenotype and Induces Sorafenib Resistance in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Researchers identified miR-494 upregulation in a subgroup of human and rat hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) with stem cell-like characteristics, as well as multiple epigenetic mechanisms involved in its aberrant expression in HCC cell lines and patients. [Cell Death Dis] Full Article

Epithelial Cell Adhesion Molecule Overexpression Regulates Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition, Stemness and Metastasis of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Cells via the PTEN/AKT/mTOR Pathway

Ectopic epithelial cell adhesion molecule expression in nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells promoted epithelial-mesenchymal transition, induced a CSC-like phenotype, and enhanced metastasis in vitro and in vivo without an effect on cell proliferation. [Cell Death Dis] Full Article

Characterization of a FOXG1:TLE1 Transcriptional Network in Glioblastoma Initiating Cells

Investigators characterized FOXG1 and TLE1 target genes in glioblastoma patient-derived brain tumor initiating cells using ChIP-Seq and RNA-Seq approaches. [Mol Oncol] Abstract | Full Article

Depletion of S100A4⁺ Stromal Cells Does Not Prevent HCC Development but Reduces the Stem Cell-Like Phenotype of the Tumors

Depletion of S100A4⁺ cells by ganciclovir injection did not prevent the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but reduced the stemness phenotype of the tumor as measured by the expression of progenitor cell, biliary cell and hepatocyte markers. [Exp Mol Med] Full Article

COX-2 Induces Oncogenic MicroRNA miR655 in Human Breast Cancer

MCF7-miR655 cells displayed upregulated NOTCH/WNT genes; both pathway inhibitors abrogated miR655-induced spheroid formation, linking miR655 with stem-like cells-related pathways. [Sci Rep] Full Article

Functional Isolation of Tumor-Initiating Cells using Microfluidic-Based Migration Identifies Phosphatidylserine Decarboxylase as a Key Regulator

Isolation of tumor-initiating cells currently relies on markers that do not reflect essential biologic functions of these cells. Researchers proposed to overcome this limitation by isolating tumor-initiating cells based on enhanced migration, a function tightly linked to tumor-initiating potential through epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition. [Sci Rep] Full Article

Vitamin C Preferentially Kills Cancer Stem Cells in Hepatocellular Carcinoma via SVCT-2

In vitro and in vivo experiments demonstrated that clinically achievable concentrations of vitamin C (VC) induced cell death in liver cancer cells and the response to VC was correlated with sodium-dependent VC transporter 2 (SVCT-2) expressions. [npj Precis Oncol] Full Article

Noncoding RNAs in Liver Cancer Stem Cells: The Big Impact of Little Things

The authors shed light on the regulatory roles of noncoding RNAs, especially microRNAs and long noncoding RNAs, in liver CSCs acquisition and maintenance after presenting an overview about the characteristics of liver CSCs and their origins. [Cancer Lett] Abstract

Visit our reviews page to see a complete list of reviews in the cancer stem cell research field.

Rasna Therapeutics, Inc. Announces Follow Up Phase II Clinical Data Confirming Efficacy of Actinomycin D in Patients with NPM1-Mutated Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Rasna Therapeutics, Inc. announced follow up Phase II clinical data showing that four out of nine evaluable acute nyeloid leukemia patients carrying the NPM1 gene mutation treated with actinomycin D, achieved complete remission. [Rasna Therapeutics, Inc.] Press Release

Cantex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Announces FDA Orphan Drug Designation Has Been Granted to CX-01 for Treatment of Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Cantex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced that the FDA has granted Orphan Drug Designation to CX-01 for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia. [Cantex Pharmaceuticals, Inc.] Press Release

Faced with Public Pressure, Research Institutions Step Up Reporting of Clinical Trial Results

The reporting of clinical trial results to a public database — mandated by a ten-year-old federal law — has improved sharply in the last two years, with universities and other nonprofit research centers leading the way. [STAT News] Editorial

Koch-Backed Groups Urge Congress to Pass Right-to-Try Legislation

Several deep-pocketed political advocacy groups founded by Charles and David Koch are ramping up their advocacy before Congress on a niche issue: access to experimental drugs. [STAT News] Editorial

NEW The Stem Cell Niche Conference 2018
May 27-31, 2018
Copenhagen, Denmark

Visit our events page to see a complete list of events in the community.

NEW Postdoctoral Scholarship – Translational Cancer Stem Cell Biology (Lund University)

NEW Postdoctoral Position – Hematology and Cancer Biology (University of Florida)

Postdoctoral Positions – Gene Regulation and/or Cancer Biology (University of North Carolina)

Postdoctoral Fellow – Cancer Biology (University of Pennsylvania)

Postdoctoral Associate – Control of Metastasis/Cancer Stem Cell Regulation (University of Miami)

PhD Student – Stem Cells in Tumor Initiation (German Cancer Research Center)

Postdoctoral Fellows – Cancer/Stem Cell Biology (Stanford University)

Faculty Positions – Cancer and Stem Cell Biology (Sun Yat-Sen University)

Postdoctoral Fellows – Cancer Stem Cell Biology (Genome Institute of Singapore)

Research Officers – Cancer Stem Cell Biology (Genome Institute of Singapore)

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