Cell softness regulates tumorigenicity and stemness of cancer cells.
EMBO J
; 40(2): e106123, 2021 01 15.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-33274785
ABSTRACT
Identifying and sorting highly tumorigenic and metastatic tumor cells from a heterogeneous cell population is a daunting challenge. Here, we show that microfluidic devices can be used to sort marker-based heterogeneous cancer stem cells (CSC) into mechanically stiff and soft subpopulations. The isolated soft tumor cells (< 400 Pa) but not the stiff ones (> 700 Pa) can form a tumor in immunocompetent mice with 100 cells per inoculation. Notably, only the soft, but not the stiff cells, isolated from CD133+ , ALDH+ , or side population CSCs, are able to form a tumor with only 100 cells in NOD-SCID or immunocompetent mice. The Wnt signaling protein BCL9L is upregulated in soft tumor cells and regulates their stemness and tumorigenicity. Clinically, BCL9L expression is correlated with a worse prognosis. Our findings suggest that the intrinsic softness is a unique marker of highly tumorigenic and metastatic tumor cells.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Células-Tronco Neoplásicas
/
Carcinogênese
Tipo de estudo:
Prognostic_studies
Limite:
Animals
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Female
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Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
EMBO J
Ano de publicação:
2021
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
China