CRISPR/Cas9-based Gene Therapies for Fighting Drug Resistance Mediated by Cancer Stem Cells

Abstract

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are cancer-initiating cells found in most tumors and hematological cancers. CSCs are involved in cells progression, recurrence of tumors, and drug resistance. Current therapies have been focused on treating the mass of tumor cells and cannot eradicate the CSCs. CSCs drug-specific targeting is considered as an approach to precisely target these cells. Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR/Cas9) gene-editing systems are making progress and showing promise in the cancer research field. One of the attractive applications of CRISPR/Cas9 as one approach of gene therapy is targeting the critical genes involved in drug resistance and maintenance of CSCs. The synergistic effects of gene editing as a novel gene therapy approach and traditional therapeutic methods, including chemotherapy, can resolve drug resistance challenges and regression of the cancers. This review article considers different aspects of CRISPR/Cas9 ability in the study and targeting of CSCs with the intention to investigate their application in drug resistance.

Oleanolic acid inhibits colon cancer cell stemness and reverses chemoresistance by suppressing JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway

“…Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are a distinct subpopulation of cancer cells that can differentiate and self-renew, as is widely recognized [28,33]. Numerous studies conducted in recent times have provided evidence that CSCs play a role in tumorigenesis, drug resistance, and proliferation of using their persistent proliferation and resistance to traditional anti-cancer treatments [34][35][36]. Therefore, it has been thought that targeting CSCs is the best course of action for treating cancer in recent years.…”