[Ultrastructural analysis of glioma stem cells-progenitors].
OBJECTIVE
It is well known that glioma stem cells-progenitors (GSCP) proliferate indefinitely and hardly differentiate in vitro, however, the reasons remain unknown. The aim of this study was to explore the ultrastructural basis of GSCP.


METHODS
GSCP, kept by our laboratory, were collected, embedded, and cut into ultrathin sections and observed under the transmission electron microscope.


RESULTS
A single GSCP usually had relatively well developed mitochondria, Golgi apparatuses, ribosomes, and undeveloped rough endoplasmic reticulum, but seldom lysosomes and no typical autophagosomes were found, and the nuclear-cytoplasmic ratio was high. The nuclei frequently contained huge amounts of euchromatin and a small quantity of heterochromatin, and in most nuclei there were only one nucleolus, however, two or more nucleoli were also common. Typical apoptotic cells could hardly be found in tumor-spheres, and between neighboring cells in tumor-spheres there were incompletely developed desmosomes or intermediate junction.


CONCLUSIONS
The ultrastructural features of glioma stem cells-progenitors showed that BTSCP were very primitive and the lack of autophagy and the underdevelopment of some other cellular organelles are probably the reasons for the differential inhibition of GSCPs.
Zhao
Yao-Dong
YD
Department of Cerebral Surgery of the 2nd Affiliated Hospital of Suzhou University, the Laboratory of Aging and Neuro-Diseases of Suzhou University, Suzhou 215004, China.
Huang
Qiang
Q
Zhang
Tian-Yi
TY
Dong
Jun
J
Wang
Ai-Dong
AD
Ding
Fei
F
Lan
Qing
Q
Gu
Xiao-Song
XS
Qin
Zheng-Hong
ZH
D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000648:ultrastructure; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000648:ultrastructure; D002843:Chromatin / Q000648:ultrastructure; D003593:Cytoplasm / Q000648:ultrastructure; D005910:Glioma / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D006801:Humans; D007365:Intercellular Junctions / Q000648:ultrastructure; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000648:ultrastructure; D014411:Neoplastic Stem Cells / Q000648:ultrastructure*
D002843:Chromatin