CD133 has been implicated as a cancer stem cell (CSC) surface marker in several malignancies including pancreatic cancer. However, the functional role of this surface glycoprotein in the cancer stem cell remains elusive. In this study, we determined that CD133 overexpression induced “stemness” properties in MIA-PaCa2 cells along with increased tumorigenicity, tumor progression, and metastasis in vivo. Additionally, CD133 expression induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and increased in vitro invasion. EMT induction and increased invasiveness were mediated by NF-κB activation, as inhibition of NF-κB mitigated these effects. This study showed that CD133 expression contributes to pancreatic cancer “stemness,” tumorigenicity, EMT induction, invasion, and metastasis.
Every year, nearly 300,000 people are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer worldwide, and an equivalent number succumb to this disease. One of the major challenges of pancreatic cancer that contributes to its poor survival rates is the development of resistance to the standard chemotherapy. Heterogeneity of the tumor, the dense fibroblastic stroma, and the aggressive biology of the tumor all contribute to the chemoresistant phenotype. In addition, the acellular components of the tumor microenvironment like hypoxia, stress pathways in the stromal cells, and the cytokines that are secreted by the immune cells, have a definitive role in orchestrating the chemoresistant property of the tumor. In this review, we systematically focus on the role played by the different microenvironmental components in determining chemoresistance of pancreatic tumors.
Purpose Pancreatic adenocarcinoma is the fourth leading cause for cancer-related mortality with a survival rate of less than 5%. Late diagnosis and lack of effective chemotherapeutic regimen contribute to these grim survival statistics. Relapse of any tumor is largely attributed to the presence of tumor-initiating cells (TIC) or cancer stem cells (CSC). These cells are considered as hurdles to cancer therapy as no known chemotherapeutic compound is reported to target them. Thus, there is an urgent need to develop a TIC-targeted therapy for pancreatic cancer. Experimental design We isolated CD133+ cells from a spontaneous PDAC mouse model and studied both surface expression, molecular markers of pancreatic TICs. We also studied tumor initiation properties by implanting low numbers of CD133+ cells in immune competent mice. Effect of Minnelide, a drug currently under Phase I clinical trial, was studied on the tumors derived from the CD133+ cells. Results Our study showed for the first time that CD133+ population demonstrated all the molecular markers for pancreatic TIC. These cells initiated tumors in immunocompetent mouse models and showed increased expression of pro-survival and pro-invasive proteins compared to the CD133− non-TIC population. Our study further showed that Minnelide, was very efficient in downregulating both CD133− and CD133+ population in the tumors, resulting in a 60% decrease in tumor volume compared to the untreated ones. Conclusion As Minnelide is currently under Phase I clinical trial, its evaluation in reducing tumor burden by decreasing TIC as well as non-TIC population suggests its potential as an effective therapy.
Chemoresistance in pancreatic cancer has been attributed to tumor-initiating cells (TICs), a minor sub-population of tumor cells. However, the mechanism of chemo-resistance in these cells is still unclear.In the current study, immunohistochemical analysis of LSL-KrasG12D; LSL-Trp53R172H; PdxCre (KPC) murine tumors indicated that hypoxic regions developed through tumor progression. This hypoxic “niche” correlated with increased CD133+ population that had an increased HIF1A activity. Consistent with this observation, CD133+ cells had increased glucose uptake and activity of glycolytic pathway enzymes compared to CD133− cells. Mass spectrometric analysis (UPLC-TQD) following metabolic labeling of CD133+ cells with [13C]-U6 glucose confirmed this observation. Furthermore, although both populations had functionally active mitochondria, CD133+ cells had low mitochondrial complex I and complex IV activity and lesser accumulation of ROS in response to standard chemotherapeutic compounds like paclitaxel, 5FU and gemcitabine. CD133+ cells also showed increased resistance to all three chemotherapeutic compounds and treatment with Glut1 inhibitor (STF31) reversed this resistance, promoting apoptotic death in these cells similar to CD133− cells.Our study indicates that the altered metabolic profile of CD133+ pancreatic TIC protects them against apoptosis, by reducing accumulation of ROS induced by standard chemotherapeutic agents, thereby confering chemoresistance. Since resistance to existing chemotherapy contributes to the poor prognosis in pancreatic cancer, our study paves the way for identifying novel therapeutic targets for managing chemoresistance and tumor recurrence in pancreatic cancer.
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