Search

The metabolism of oxygen, although central to life, produces reactive oxygen species (ROS) that have been implicated in processes as diverse as cancer, cardiovascular disease and ageing. It has recently been shown that central nervous system stem cells (1,2) and haematopoietic stem cells and early progenitors (3-6) contain lower levels of ROS than their more mature progeny, and that these differences are critical for maintaining stem cell function. We proposed that epithelial tissue stem cells and their cancer stem cell (CSC) counterparts may also share this property. Here we show that normal mammary epithelial stem cells contain lower concentrations of ROS than their more mature progeny cells. Notably, subsets of CSCs in some human and murine breast tumours contain lower ROS levels than corresponding non-tumorigenic cells (NTCs). Consistent with ROS being critical mediators of ionizing-radiation- induced cell killing (7,8), CSCs in these tumours develop less DNA damage and are preferentially spared after irradiation compared to NTCs. Lower ROS levels in CSCs are associated with increased expression of free radical scavenging systems. Pharmacological depletion of ROS scavengers in CSCs markedly decreases their clonogenicity and results in radiosensitization. These results indicate that, similar to normal tissue stem cells, subsets of CSCs in some tumours contain lower ROS levels and enhanced ROS defences compared to their non-tumorigenic progeny, which may contribute to tumour radioresistance., We began by addressing whether the low ROS concentrations that seem to be critical for self-renewal of haematopoietic stem cells (HSCS) (3,5) are also a property of mammary epithelial stem [...]

Background & Aims: Paneth cells contribute to the small intestinal niche of Lgr5+ stem cells. Although the colon also contains Lgr5+ stem cells, it does not contain Paneth cells. We investigated the existence of colonic Paneth-like cells that have a distinct transcriptional signature and support Lgr5+ stem cells. Methods: We used multicolor fluorescence-activated cell sorting to isolate different subregions of colon crypts, based on known markers, from dissociated colonic epithelium of mice. We performed multiplexed single-cell gene expression analysis with quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction followed by hierarchical clustering analysis to characterize distinct cell types. We used immunostaining and fluorescence-activated cell sorting analyses with in vivo administration of a Notch inhibitor and in vitro organoid cultures to characterize different cell types. Results: Multicolor fluorescence-activated cell sorting could isolate distinct regions of colonic crypts. Four major epithelial subtypes or transcriptional states were revealed by gene expression analysis of selected populations of single cells. One of these, the goblet cells, contained a distinct cKit/CD117+ crypt base subpopulation that expressed Dll1, Dll4, and epidermal growth factor, similar to Paneth cells, which were also marked by cKit. In the colon, cKit+ goblet cells were interdigitated with Lgr5+ stem cells. In vivo, this colonic cKit+ population was regulated by Notch signaling; administration of a γ-secretase inhibitor to mice increased the number of cKit+ cells. When isolated from mouse colon, cKit+ cells promoted formation of organoids from Lgr5+ stem cells, which expressed Kitl/stem cell factor, the ligand for cKit. When organoids were depleted of cKit+ cells using a toxin-conjugated antibody, organoid formation decreased. Conclusions: cKit marks small intestinal Paneth cells and a subset of colonic goblet cells that are regulated by Notch signaling and support Lgr5+ stem cells. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Summary: Human breast tumors contain a breast cancer stem cell (BCSC) population with properties reminiscent of normal stem cells. We found 37 microRNAs that were differentially expressed between human BCSCs and nontumorigenic cancer cells. Three clusters, miR-200c-141, miR-200b-200a-429, and miR-183-96-182 were downregulated in human BCSCs, normal human and murine mammary stem/progenitor cells, and embryonal carcinoma cells. Expression of BMI1, a known regulator of stem cell self-renewal, was modulated by miR-200c. miR-200c inhibited the clonal expansion of breast cancer cells and suppressed the growth of embryonal carcinoma cells in vitro. Most importantly, miR-200c strongly suppressed the ability of normal mammary stem cells to form mammary ducts and tumor formation driven by human BCSCs in vivo. The coordinated downregulation of three microRNA clusters and the similar functional regulation of clonal expansion by miR-200c provide a molecular link that connects BCSCs with normal stem cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]