Integrin-β4 identifies cancer stem cell-enriched populations of partially mesenchymal carcinoma cells.

ABSTRACT: Neoplastic cells within individual carcinomas often exhibit considerable phenotypic heterogeneity in their epithelial versus mesenchymal-like cell states. Because carcinoma cells with mesenchymal features are often more resistant to therapy and may serve as a source of relapse, we sought to determine whether such cells could be further stratified into functionally distinct subtypes. Indeed, we find that a basal epithelial marker, integrin-β4 (ITGB4), can be used to enable stratification of mesenchymal-like triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) cells that differ from one another in their relative tumorigenic abilities. Notably, we demonstrate that ITGB4⁺ cancer stem cell (CSC)-enriched mesenchymal cells reside in an intermediate epithelial/mesenchymal phenotypic state. Among patie

SUBMITTER: Bierie B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5373369 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature