title: Understanding of leukemic stem cells and their clinical implications.
abstract: Since leukemic stem cells (LSCs) or cancer stem cells (CSCs) were found in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in 1997, extensive studies have been contributed to identification and characterization of such cell populations in various tissues. LSCs are now generally recognized as a heterogeneous cell population that possesses the capacities of self-renewal, proliferation and differentiation. It has been shown that LSCs are regulated by critical surface antigens, microenvironment, intrinsic signaling pathways, and novel molecules such as some ncRNAs. To date, significant progress has been made in understanding of LSCs, leading to the development of numerous LSCs-targeted therapies. Moreover, various novel therapeutic agents targeting LSCs are undergoing clinical trials. Here, we review current knowledge of LSCs, and discuss the potential therapies and their challenges that are being tested in clinical trials for evaluation of their effects on leukemias.
authors.affiliation: CAS Key Laboratory of Pathogenic Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China.|University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Xuefei
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, Shreveport, LA, USA.
authors.forename: Shile
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: CAS Key Laboratory of Pathogenic Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China. chenjl@im.ac.cn.|University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China. chenjl@im.ac.cn.|College of Animal Sciences, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China. chenjl@im.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Ji-Long
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D000066673:Cell Self Renewal; D015973:Gene Expression Regulation, Leukemic; D006801:Humans; D015470:Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D014411:Neoplastic Stem Cells / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor
keywords: BM niche; Cancer stem cell; Clinical implications; Leukemia; Leukemic stem cell; Surface markers; ncRNAs