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    Cancer Res. 2010 Nov 1;70(21):8874-85. Epub 2010 Oct 19.

    Tumorigenic and metastatic activity of human thyroid cancer stem cells.

    Source

    Department of Surgical and Oncological Sciences, Cellular and Molecular Pathophysiology Laboratory, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.

    Abstract

    Thyroid carcinoma is the most common endocrine malignancy and the first cause of death among endocrine cancers. We show that the tumorigenic capacity in thyroid cancer is confined in a small subpopulation of stem-like cells with high aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH(high)) activity and unlimited replication potential. ALDH(high) cells can be expanded indefinitely in vitro as tumor spheres, which retain the tumorigenic potential upon delivery in immunocompromised mice. Orthotopic injection of minute numbers of thyroid cancer stem cells recapitulates the behavior of the parental tumor, including the aggressive metastatic features of undifferentiated thyroid carcinomas, which are sustained by constitutive activation of cMet and Akt in thyroid cancer stem cells. The identification of tumorigenic and metastagenic thyroid cancer cells may provide unprecedented preclinical tools for development and preclinical validation of novel targeted therapies.

    ©2010 AACR.

    PMID:
    20959469
    [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
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