Glioblastoma stem cells: lessons from the tumor hierarchy in a lethal cancer

Glioblastoma ranks among the most lethal of all human cancers. Glioblastomas display striking cellular heterogeneity, with stem-like glioblastoma stem cells (GSCs) at the apex. Although the original identification of GSCs dates back more than a decade, the purification and characterization of GSCs r...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Genes & development Vol. 33; no. 11-12; p. 591
Main Authors: Gimple, Ryan C, Bhargava, Shruti, Dixit, Deobrat, Rich, Jeremy N
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: United States 01.06.2019
Subjects:
Animals
Brain Neoplasms - genetics
Brain Neoplasms - pathology
Brain Neoplasms - physiopathology
Brain Neoplasms - therapy
Cell Differentiation
Epigenesis, Genetic
Glioblastoma - genetics
Glioblastoma - pathology
Glioblastoma - physiopathology
Glioblastoma - therapy
Humans
Neoplastic Stem Cells - physiology
Tumor Microenvironment
brain tumor
tumor-initiating cell
glioblastoma
glioblastoma stem cell
cancer stem cell
ISSN:1549-5477, 1549-5477
Online Access:Get more information
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Summary:Glioblastoma ranks among the most lethal of all human cancers. Glioblastomas display striking cellular heterogeneity, with stem-like glioblastoma stem cells (GSCs) at the apex. Although the original identification of GSCs dates back more than a decade, the purification and characterization of GSCs remains challenging. Despite these challenges, the evidence that GSCs play important roles in tumor growth and response to therapy has grown. Like normal stem cells, GSCs are functionally defined and distinguished from their differentiated tumor progeny at core transcriptional, epigenetic, and metabolic regulatory levels, suggesting that no single therapeutic modality will be universally effective against a heterogenous GSC population. Glioblastomas induce a systemic immunosuppression with mixed responses to oncoimmunologic modalities, suggesting the potential for augmentation of response with a deeper consideration of GSCs. Unfortunately, the GSC literature has been complicated by frequent use of inferior cell lines and a lack of proper functional analyses. Collectively, glioblastoma offers a reliable cancer to study cancer stem cells to better model the human disease and inform improved biologic understanding and design of novel therapeutics.
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ISSN:1549-5477
1549-5477
DOI:10.1101/gad.324301.119