Cancer associated fibroblasts serve as an ovarian cancer stem cell niche through noncanonical Wnt5a signaling.

ABSTRACT: Frequent relapse and chemoresistance cause poor outcome in ovarian cancer (OC) and cancer stem cells (CSCs) are important contributors. While most studies focus exclusively on CSCs, the role of the microenvironment in providing optimal conditions to maintain their tumor-initiating potential remains poorly understood. Cancer associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are a major constituent of the OC tumor microenvironment and we show that CAFs and CSCs are enriched following chemotherapy in patient tumors. CAFs significantly increase OC cell resistance to carboplatin. Using heterotypic CAF-OC cocultures and in vivo limiting dilution assay, we confirm that the CAFs act by enriching the CSC population. CAFs increase the symmetric division of CSCs as well as the dedifferentiation of bulk OC cells into CSC

SUBMITTER: Fang Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10774407 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature