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Current Medicinal Chemistry

Editor-in-Chief

ISSN (Print): 0929-8673
ISSN (Online): 1875-533X

Cancer Stem Cells: A New Paradigm for Understanding Tumor Growth and Progression and Drug Resistance

Author(s): Rosaria Gangemi, Laura Paleari, Anna Maria Orengo, Alfredo Cesario, Leonardo Chessa, Silvano Ferrini and Patrizia Russo

Volume 16, Issue 14, 2009

Page: [1688 - 1703] Pages: 16

DOI: 10.2174/092986709788186147

Price: $65

Abstract

Normal somatic stem cells (SC) are naturally resistant to chemotherapeutic agents due to their expression of various membrane transporter molecules (such as MDR-1), detoxifying enzymes and DNA repair proteins. In addition, they also have a slow rate of cell turnover and therefore escape from chemotherapeutic agents that target rapidly replicating cells. Cancer stem cells (CSC), being the mutated counterparts of normal SC, also have similar properties, which allow them to survive therapy. These surviving CSC then repopulate the tumor, causing relapse. The purpose of this review is to understand the most current research into the cellular and molecular biology of CSC. Topics that will be explored are the origin of CSC, the CSC niche, the regulation of self-renewal in normal and cancer SC, and CSC as therapeutic targets.

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