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Updated: Jul 10, 2026
Isolation and Characterization of a Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma Subpopulation Having Stem Cell Characteristics
Published on: May 11, 2016
Nucleostemin expression in squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck
Zdenek Cada1, Jan Boucek, Barbora Dvoranková
1Institute of Anatomy and Head and Neck Surgery, First Faculty of Medicine, Second Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic.
Background:
This study presents initial data on presence of nucleostemin--a nucleolar protein typical of stem cells in the normal squamous epithelium of the oropharynx and larynx - in squamous cell carcinoma originating from these epithelia.
Materials And Methods:
Differentiation and proliferation markers such as keratins, beta-catenin, galectin-1, and Ki-67 were studied in parallel with nucleostemin for defining cell characteristics.
Results:
Nucleostemin was detected in nucleoli of both proliferating basal cells and terminally differentiated suprabasal cells of normal epithelium and in tumor cells. Importantly, malignant transformation was connected with a significant enlargement of nucleostemin-positive nucleoli in these cell types.
Conclusion:
Detection of nucleostemin in head and neck cancer cells, together with the size of nucleoli, may be important in the evaluation of tumor differentiation and biology.
