Abstract
The expression of CD44 tags cells with stemness-associated properties (cancer initiating cells or cancer stem cells - CSC). This membrane glycoprotein with a cytoplasmic domain indirectly associated with the cellular cytoskeleton, has a crucial role in tumorigenesis. The CD44 receptor enables the cell to respond to changes in tumor microenvironment, promoting several signaling events related to tumor initiation, progression and fixation in distant host tissues. Although the contribution of this transmembrane protein in gene regulation remains unclear, its overexpression in adenocarcinomas, mostly supported by microRNA (miR)-mediated upregulation of target mRNA, is widely accepted. Herein, we gather the evidence that CD44 is one of the most predominant markers of malignant cells and may be found in diverse phenotypes associated with tumor progression. Additionally, CD44 tumor receptors were found to have different roles at a transcriptional level. Thus, innovative therapeutic strategies should rely heavily on its metastasis-promoting ability. Furthermore, the concept of selectively targeting cell sub-populations may be used to develop specific therapeutic and/or diagnostic systems. An approach based on targeting CD44+ cells might provide a strategy to design guided-therapeutic systems against multiple malignant cells including putative CSC.
Keywords: Cancer stem cells, CD44, epithelial-mesenchymal transition, metastasis, tumor progression.
Current Cancer Drug Targets
Title:Looking out for Cancer Stem Cells’ Properties: The Value-Driving Role of CD44 for Personalized Medicines
Volume: 14 Issue: 9
Author(s): Sara Horta, Ana L. Agostinho, Rita Mateus, Lucilia Pereira, Carolina Pereira, Liliana Capinha, Slavomira Doktorovova, Alexandra Brito and Mafalda Videira
Affiliation:
Keywords: Cancer stem cells, CD44, epithelial-mesenchymal transition, metastasis, tumor progression.
Abstract: The expression of CD44 tags cells with stemness-associated properties (cancer initiating cells or cancer stem cells - CSC). This membrane glycoprotein with a cytoplasmic domain indirectly associated with the cellular cytoskeleton, has a crucial role in tumorigenesis. The CD44 receptor enables the cell to respond to changes in tumor microenvironment, promoting several signaling events related to tumor initiation, progression and fixation in distant host tissues. Although the contribution of this transmembrane protein in gene regulation remains unclear, its overexpression in adenocarcinomas, mostly supported by microRNA (miR)-mediated upregulation of target mRNA, is widely accepted. Herein, we gather the evidence that CD44 is one of the most predominant markers of malignant cells and may be found in diverse phenotypes associated with tumor progression. Additionally, CD44 tumor receptors were found to have different roles at a transcriptional level. Thus, innovative therapeutic strategies should rely heavily on its metastasis-promoting ability. Furthermore, the concept of selectively targeting cell sub-populations may be used to develop specific therapeutic and/or diagnostic systems. An approach based on targeting CD44+ cells might provide a strategy to design guided-therapeutic systems against multiple malignant cells including putative CSC.
Export Options
About this article
Cite this article as:
Horta Sara, L. Agostinho Ana, Mateus Rita, Pereira Lucilia, Pereira Carolina, Capinha Liliana, Doktorovova Slavomira, Brito Alexandra and Videira Mafalda, Looking out for Cancer Stem Cells’ Properties: The Value-Driving Role of CD44 for Personalized Medicines, Current Cancer Drug Targets 2014; 14 (9) . https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/1568009614666141111154713
DOI https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/1568009614666141111154713 |
Print ISSN 1568-0096 |
Publisher Name Bentham Science Publisher |
Online ISSN 1873-5576 |
Call for Papers in Thematic Issues
Advances in Cancer Biomarkers and Potential Drug Targets: From Diagnosis to Therapy
Cancer biomarkers play a crucial role in the diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of cancer. They provide valuable information for cancer detection, risk assessment, treatment selection, and monitoring response to therapy. With advancements in molecular biology and high-throughput technologies, there has been an increasing interest in identifying and characterizing cancer biomarkers ...read more
Novel Therapeutic Approaches to Target Drug Resistant Tumors
With the development of disciplines such as chemical biology and molecular biology, the genes or proteins closely related to tumor occurrence and development have gradually become clear. Targeted therapies targeting these genes or proteins provide more effective methods for tumor treatment. Tumor targeted drugs generally only act on specific targets ...read more
ROLE OF IMMUNE AND GENOTOXIC RESPONSE BIOMARKERS IN TUMOR MICROENVIRONMENT IN CANCER DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT
Biological biomarkers have been used in medical research as an indicator of a normal or abnormal process inside the body, or of a disease. Nowadays, various researchers are in process to explore and investigate the biological markers for the early assessment of cancer. DNA Damage response (DDR) pathways and immune ...read more
Targeting the battlefield between host and tumor: basic research and clinical practice on reshaping tumor immune microenvironment
Immune system protects host against malignant tumors through effector cells and molecules. Cancer development and its response to therapy are regulated by inflammation, which either promotes or suppresses cancer progression. Chronic inflammation facilitates cancer progression and treatment resistance, whereas induction of acute inflammatory reactions often lead to anti-cancer immune responses. ...read more
- Author Guidelines
- Graphical Abstracts
- Fabricating and Stating False Information
- Research Misconduct
- Post Publication Discussions and Corrections
- Publishing Ethics and Rectitude
- Increase Visibility of Your Article
- Archiving Policies
- Peer Review Workflow
- Order Your Article Before Print
- Promote Your Article
- Manuscript Transfer Facility
- Editorial Policies
- Allegations from Whistleblowers
Related Articles
-
Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) Induced Dyspepsia
Current Pharmaceutical Design HOX Genes as Potential Markers of Circulating Tumour Cells
Current Molecular Medicine Dysfunction of Mitochondrial ATP Production As a Target for Personalized Cancer Therapy
Current Pharmacogenomics and Personalized Medicine Anti-Helicobacter pylori Agents. An Update
Mini-Reviews in Medicinal Chemistry Near-infrared Light Responsive Upconversion Nanoparticles for Imaging, Drug Delivery and Therapy of Cancers
Current Nanoscience Connecting A Tumor to the Environment
Current Pharmaceutical Design Targeting Cancer Stem Cells: Promises and Challenges
Anti-Cancer Agents in Medicinal Chemistry Has Selenium a Chemopreventive Effect on Hepatocellular Carcinoma?
Mini-Reviews in Medicinal Chemistry Prevention of Upper Gastrointestinal Ulcer and Complications in Low-Dose Aspirin Users
Current Pharmaceutical Design Drug Repurposing: An Emerging Tool for Drug Reuse, Recycling and Discovery
Current Drug Research Reviews Cetuximab Inhibits Gastric Cancer Growth in vivo, Independent of KRAS Status
Current Cancer Drug Targets State-of-the-Art Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy in Oncologic Imaging
Current Molecular Imaging (Discontinued) Adenoviral Vectors for Cancer Gene Therapy
Current Genomics Overview of the Metallometabolomic Methodology for Metal-Based Drug Metabolism
Current Drug Metabolism Cardiac Multidetector Computed Tomography: Basic Physics of Image Acquisition and Clinical Applications
Current Cardiology Reviews Targeting Never-In-Mitosis-A Related Kinase 5 in Cancer: A Review
Current Medicinal Chemistry Pharmacotherapy & Surgical Interventions Available for Obesity Management and Importance of Pancreatic Lipase Inhibitory Phytomolecules as Safer Anti-Obesity Therapeutics
Mini-Reviews in Medicinal Chemistry Cancer Gene Therapy by Adenovirus-Mediated Gene Transfer
Current Gene Therapy Targeting Inhibitor of Apoptosis Proteins (IAPs) for Cancer Therapy
Anti-Cancer Agents in Medicinal Chemistry Is Src a Viable Target for Treating Solid Tumours?
Current Cancer Drug Targets