title: Identification of a cancer stem cell-like side population in the HeLa human cervical carcinoma cell line.
abstract: The present study aimed to identify the stem cell characteristics of side population (SP) cells sorted from the widely-used HeLa human cervical carcinoma cell line. The SP cells were sorted from the HeLa cell line using fluorescence-activating cell sorting (FACS). Stem cell characteristics of the SP cells, including proliferation, self-renewal, differentiation and the ability to form xenografts, were investigatedin vitroandin vivo. The SP cells demonstrated strong tumorigenesis followingin vivotransplantation into five to six-week-old female Balb/c mice. The SP cells were observed to be more resistant to chemotherapy and radiotherapy compared with non-side population (NSP) cells. A higher expression of CD133 was observed in the SP cells compared with the NSP cells following FACS. The results demonstrated that the SP cells from the HeLa human cervical carcinoma cell line exhibit stem cell characteristicsin vitroand also have a strong ability to form tumorsin vivo. The cell surface marker CD133 may serve as a potential molecular marker for the identification of cervical cancer stem cells (CSCs).
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100029, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Kefang
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Jianfang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zeng
authors.forename: Lijing
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.forename: Jiaxin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Bin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Keng
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Shen
keywords: CD133; HeLa cell line; cancer stem cells; cervical carcinoma; side population cells