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Careful sequencing studies on small samples of normal oesophageal epithelium reveal the presence of very abundant cellular clones harbouring mutations in known cancer genes (and elsewhere). The number and size of these clones increases with age. This surprising finding confirms previous studies on sun-exposed epidermis. It has important implications for the understanding of cancer initiation and will hopefully lead to conceptual and clinical advances., (© 2019 médecine/sciences – Inserm.)

In a normal context, bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), members of the TGFβ superfamily, are key players in adult stem cell biology. They are involved in the control of the overall functional and phenotypic properties of the stem cell population (self-renewal, proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis, quiescence, etc.). They can act directly on the stem cell or through its microenvironment, contributing to the tight balance of this system. In the tumorigenic context, alterations of the BMP signalling are involved in the deregulation of the interaction between stem cells and their microenvironment and, as such, participate to the different steps of the transformation process., (© 2012 médecine/sciences – Inserm / SRMS.)