美國哥倫比亞大學(xué)醫(yī)學(xué)中心等機構(gòu)的研究人員9月9日報告說，他們在成年實驗鼠前列腺中發(fā)現(xiàn)的干細胞可能是一種前列腺癌干細胞,。
研究人員說,，這種被命名為“CARN”的干細胞在實驗鼠前列腺組織再生過程中發(fā)揮作用，如果某些腫瘤抑制基因未能開啟,，這種干細胞就可以造成前列腺癌變,。
研究人員還發(fā)現(xiàn)，這種干細胞并不依賴實驗鼠的雄性激素存活和生長,，這或許可以解釋為何一些晚期前列腺癌患者對旨在調(diào)控雄性激素的療法產(chǎn)生抵抗,。
這項研究成果9日發(fā)表在英國《自然》雜志網(wǎng)絡(luò)版上。研究人員說,，盡管這只是一項動物實驗,，但弄清前列腺中哪些細胞引發(fā)癌癥有助于開發(fā)出更好的前列腺癌療法。
癌干細胞又稱腫瘤干細胞,，它們在腫瘤中具有自我更新能力并能產(chǎn)生異質(zhì)性癌細胞,，因具有干細胞的特性而得名。（生物谷Bioon.com）
生物谷推薦原始出處：
Nature advance online publication 9 September 2009 | doi:10.1038/nature08361
A luminal epithelial stem cell that is a cell of origin for prostate cancer
Xi Wang1,2,5,6, Marianna Kruithof-de Julio1,2, Kyriakos D. Economides5,7,8, David Walker5,6,8, Hailong Yu5,6,8, M. Vivienne Halili5,6,8, Ya-Ping Hu5,6,8, Sandy M. Price5,6, Cory Abate-Shen3,4,5,7 & Michael M. Shen1,2,5,6
1 Department of Medicine,
2 Department of Genetics and Development,
3 Department of Urology, and,
4 Department of Pathology and Cell Biology, Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, New York 10032, USA
5 Center for Advanced Biotechnology and Medicine,
6 Department of Pediatrics, and,
7 Department of Medicine, UMDNJ–Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854, USA
8 Present addresses: Department of Biological Sciences, Sanofi-Aventis, Bridgewater, New Jersey 08807, USA (K.D.E.); Department of Molecular Biology, Bristol-Myers Squibb Research Institute, Princeton, New Jersey 08543, USA (D.W.); Department of Food Science, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey 08901, USA (H.Y.); Cardiovascular Diseases Group, Merck Research Laboratories, Rahway, New Jersey 07065, USA (M.V.H.); Johnson and Johnson Skin Research Center, Skillman, New Jersey 08558, USA (Y.-P.H.); Department of Medical Oncology, Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08903, USA (S.M.P.).
9 Correspondence to: Michael M. Shen1,2,5,6 Correspondence and requests for materials should be addressed to M.M.S.
In epithelial tissues, the lineage relationship between normal progenitor cells and cell type(s) of origin for cancer has been poorly understood. Here we show that a known regulator of prostate epithelial differentiation, the homeobox gene Nkx3-1, marks a stem cell population that functions during prostate regeneration. Genetic lineage-marking demonstrates that rare luminal cells that express Nkx3-1 in the absence of testicular androgens (castration-resistant Nkx3-1-expressing cells, CARNs) are bipotential and can self-renew in vivo, and single-cell transplantation assays show that CARNs can reconstitute prostate ducts in renal grafts. Functional assays of Nkx3-1 mutant mice in serial prostate regeneration suggest that Nkx3-1 is required for stem cell maintenance. Furthermore, targeted deletion of the Pten tumour suppressor gene in CARNs results in rapid carcinoma formation after androgen-mediated regeneration. These observations indicate that CARNs represent a new luminal stem cell population that is an efficient target for oncogenic transformation in prostate cancer.
