J Cancer 2013; 4(6):447-457. doi:10.7150/jca.6896 This issue Cite
Research Paper
1. Surgery Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA;
2. Laboratory for Experimental Carcinogenesis, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA;
3. Department of Surgery, Division of Surgical Oncology, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, USA,
4. Department of Surgery, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD, USA;
5. Bon Secours Cancer Institute, Richmond, VA 23230, USA.
Objective: Stem-like cancer cells contribute to cancer initiation and maintenance. Stem cells can self-renew by asymmetric cell division (ACD). ACD with non-random chromosomal cosegregation (ACD-NRCC) is one possible self-renewal mechanism. There is a paucity of evidence supporting ACD-NRCC in human cancer. Our aim was to investigate ACD-NRCC and its potential interactions with the cancer niche (microenvironment) in gastrointestinal cancers.
Design: We used DNA double and single labeling approaches with FACS to isolate live cells undergoing ACD-NRCC.
Results: Gastrointestinal cancers contain rare subpopulations of cells capable of ACD-NRCC. ACD-NRCC was detected preferentially in subpopulations of cells previously suggested to be stem-like/tumor-initiating cancer cells. ACD-NRCC was independent of cell-to-cell contact, and was regulated by the cancer niche in a heat-sensitive paracrine fashion. Wnt pathway genes and proteins are differentially expressed in cells undergoing ACD-NRCC vs. symmetric cell division. Blocking the Wnt pathway with IWP2 (WNT antagonist) or siRNA-TCF4 resulted in suppression of ACD-NRCC. However, using a Wnt-agonist did not increase the relative proportion of cells undergoing ACD-NRCC.
Conclusion: Gastrointestinal cancers contain subpopulations of cells capable of ACD-NRCC. Here we show for the first time that ACD-NRCC can be regulated by the Wnt pathway, and by the cancer niche in a paracrine fashion. However, whether ACD-NRCC is exclusively associated with stem-like cancer cells remains to be determined. Further study of these findings might generate novel insights into stem cell and cancer biology. Targeting the mechanism of ACD-NRCC might engender novel approaches for cancer therapy.
Keywords: Cancer Stem Cells, Asymmetric Cell Division, Non-Random Chromosomal Cosegregation, Microenvironment.