Immunophenotypic characterization and analysis of gene expression profiling of Cancer stem cell in multiple Myeloma, with focus on identification of potential therapeutic target

• Grant number: 12/24614-5
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: March 01, 2013
• End date: February 28, 2014
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine - Medical Clinics
• Principal Investigator: Gisele Wally Braga Colleoni
• Grantee: Fabio Pascutti
• Host Institution: Escola Paulista de Medicina (EPM). Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP). Campus São Paulo. São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 10/17668-6 - Identification of biomarkers and possible therapeutical targets in B-cell lymphoproliferative disorders, AP.TEM

Abstract

Multiple myeloma (MM) is highly responsive to high dose chemotherapy and autologous stem cell transplant. However, relapse remains a limiting factor for MM cure. One possible explanation for such a paradoxical scenario comes from the cancer stem cell (CSC) hypothesis, which is opposed to the stochastic model of tumorigenesis. In this mini review, we describe how CSCs were characterized in many cancers and, recently, in MM. A better understanding of the heterogeneity comprising tumor cells, including the important compartment of CSCs, is essential in the search for therapeutic targets that can effectively contribute to the decline in the risk of relapse and to the establishment of a cure for MM.(AU)