Identification of Bronchioalveolar stem cells in normal lung and lung cancer

A regional pulmonary stem cell population, termed as bronchioalveolar stem cells (BASCs) is isolated and identified at the bronchioalveolar duct junction. Data support the hypothesis that BASCs are a stem cell population that maintains the bronchiolar Clara cells and alveolar cells of the distal lung and that their transformed counterparts give rise to adenocarcinoma.