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Cancer stem cell detection and isolation

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Abstract

Only 10 % of cancer-related deaths result from primary tumors; most are caused by metastatic tumors. It is believed that the metastatic power of tumor cells is attributed to features of a stem cell-like subpopulation of tumor cells known as cancer stem cells (CSCs). Cancer stem cells are resistant to chemotherapeutic treatments and can induce dormancy in tumor cells for long periods. Detection, isolation, and characterization of CSCs in solid tumors are hallmarks of cancer-targeted therapies in recent years. There are inevitable similarities between normal and cancer stem cells; therefore, finding specific methods or markers to differentiate them is critical to cancer therapies. Considering CSCs involvement in tumor relapse and chemotherapeutic resistance, identification of such cells in tumors is imperative for effective targeted therapy. The present review introduces practical and specific protocols used to isolate CSCs from solid tumors from colon, esophagus, liver, breast, brain, and cervix.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by a grant from the Vice Chancellor for Research at Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, and was part of a Ph.D. student’s dissertation, No. 921202.

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The authors declare they have no conflicts of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Human Genetics, Immunology Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

    Meysam Moghbeli & Mohammad Reza Abbaszadegan

  2. Department of Biology, Mashhad Branch, Islamic Azad University, Mashhad, Iran

    Faezeh Moghbeli

  3. Department of Biology, Damghan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Damghan, Iran

    Mohammad Mahdi Forghanifard

  4. Medical Genetics Research Center, Medical School, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

    Mohammad Reza Abbaszadegan

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  1. Meysam Moghbeli
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  2. Faezeh Moghbeli
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Correspondence to Mohammad Reza Abbaszadegan.

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Moghbeli, M., Moghbeli, F., Forghanifard, M.M. et al. Cancer stem cell detection and isolation. Med Oncol 31, 69 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12032-014-0069-6

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