Self-renewal memory of tumor-repopulating cells

Tumor-initiating cells(TICs)are a highly tumorigenic subpopulation of solid tumor cells that play a critical role in the initiation of cancer~[1].These tumorigenic cells resist conventional chemotherapeutic drug treatment and are assumed to be playing major roles in cancer relapses after chemotherapy~[2].However,the notion of TICs has been rather controversial.A report shows that a high percentage(】25%)of human melanoma cells can generate a tumor in a NOD-SCID interleukin-2 receptor gamma chain null mouse~[3],suggesting that there is no clonal development of solid tumors,refuting the idea of TICs.We recently developed a method of isolating TICs from cancer cell lines by culturing single individual cells of B16-F1(a melanoma cell line)into 3D soft fibrin gels~[4].In addition to being able to generate local tumors in a

Tumor-initiating cells(TICs)are a highly tumorigenic subpopulation of solid tumor cells that play a critical role in the initiation of cancer~[1].These tumorigenic cells resist conventional chemotherapeutic drug treatment and are assumed to be playing major roles in cancer relapses after chemotherapy~[2].However,the notion of TICs has been rather controversial.A report shows that a high percentage(>25%)of human melanoma cells can generate a tumor in a NOD-SCID interleukin-2 receptor gamma chain null mouse~[3],suggesting that there is no clonal development of solid tumors,refuting the idea of TICs.We recently developed a method of isolating TICs from cancer cell lines by culturing single individual cells of B16-F1(a melanoma cell line)into 3D soft fibrin gels~[4].In addition to being able to generate local tumors in a wild-type