Abstract SY05-03: Mechanisms regulating stemness in skin cancers.

Abstract

Abstract Cancer stem cells (CSCs) have been described in various cancers by their ability to reform secondary tumours upon transplantation into immunodeficient mice. Using different approaches in mice, we have recently shown that squamous skin tumors contain stem cells that present the ability to reform the parental tumor upon transplantation (Lapouge et al. EMBO J 2012) or by their ability to fuel tumor growth using lineage tracing experiments (Driessens et al Nature 2012). To define the mechanisms that regulate skin cancer stem cells, we transcriptionally profiled cutaneous CSCs at different stages of tumor progression. We uncovered a set of genes, which are enriched in CSCs irrespective of the stages of tumor progression and another set of genes, which are upregulated in CSCs only during malignant progression. We used genetic gain and loss of function in mice to unravel how some of these genes regulate tumor stemness and stimulate malignant transition in vivo within their natural environment. I will discuss how the combination of extrinsic factors such as the vascular niche (Beck et al. Nature 2011) and intrinsic factors regulate the renewal and invasive properties of CSCs during skin cancer progression. This work is supported by WELBIO, the FNRS, the European Research Council (ERC) and the EMBO Young Investigator Program. Citation Format: Cedric Blanpain. Mechanisms regulating stemness in skin cancers. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 104th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2013 Apr 6-10; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(8 Suppl):Abstract nr SY05-03. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2013-SY05-03