Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 18, 2025

Quantitative PCR-based Assay to Measure Sonic Hedgehog Signaling in Cellular Model of Ciliogenesis
07:26

Quantitative PCR-based Assay to Measure Sonic Hedgehog Signaling in Cellular Model of Ciliogenesis

Published on: January 31, 2025

607

The Role of Hedgehog Signaling Pathway in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Piotr Cierpikowski1, Anna Leszczyszyn2, Julia Bar3

  • 1Department of Maxillofacial Surgery, The Ludwik Rydygier Specialist Hospital, Osiedle Zlotej Jesieni 1, 31-826 Krakow, Poland.

Cells
|August 26, 2023
PubMed

Insights

Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is a major cancer with few treatments. The Hedgehog (HH) signaling pathway may offer new therapeutic targets for HNSCC, potentially improving patient outcomes.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Cancer Research

Background:

  • Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) presents a significant global health challenge with limited therapeutic strategies.
  • Cancer stem cells (CSCs) contribute to HNSCC's therapeutic resistance.
  • The Hedgehog (HH) signaling pathway is implicated in tissue development and carcinogenesis.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review current knowledge on the Hedgehog (HH) signaling pathway in HNSCC.
  • To explore the role of the HH pathway in HNSCC development, CSC regulation, and therapeutic resistance.
  • To discuss the potential of targeting the HH pathway for novel HNSCC therapies.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of recent advances in HH pathway research related to HNSCC.
  • Analysis of studies investigating HH pathway activation in HNSCC and its association with cancer stem cells.
  • Synthesis of information on the therapeutic implications of HH pathway inhibition in other cancers.

Main Results:

  • The Hedgehog (HH) signaling pathway is crucial for normal head and neck tissue development.
  • Aberrant HH pathway activation is linked to HNSCC development and the maintenance of cancer stem cells (CSCs).
  • While HH inhibitors are effective in other cancers, their clinical application in HNSCC is under-investigated.

Conclusions:

  • The Hedgehog (HH) pathway represents a promising target for developing novel molecularly targeted therapies for HNSCC.
  • Further clinical investigation of HH pathway inhibitors is warranted to improve HNSCC prognosis and treatment outcomes.
  • Identifying biomarkers associated with HH pathway activity could facilitate personalized therapy approaches for HNSCC.
Keywords:
cancer stem cellshead and neck cancerhedgehogmolecular targeted therapysignaling pathways

More Related Videos

Cell Population Analyses During Skin Carcinogenesis06:53

Cell Population Analyses During Skin Carcinogenesis

Published on: August 21, 2013

12.5K
Isolation and Characterization of a Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma Subpopulation Having Stem Cell Characteristics11:28

Isolation and Characterization of a Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma Subpopulation Having Stem Cell Characteristics

Published on: May 11, 2016

8.6K

Related Concept Videos

Role Of Notch Signalling In Intestinal Stem Cell Renewal01:12

Role Of Notch Signalling In Intestinal Stem Cell Renewal

Notch signaling was first discovered in Drosophila melanogaster, where it is involved in cell lineage differentiation. Notch signaling regulates the maintenance and differentiation of intestinal stem cells or ISCs by controlling the expression of atonal homolog 1 or Atoh1. Atoh1 directs cells to differentiate into secretory cells.
Direct cell-to-cell contact is needed for the activation of Notch signaling. The signal is initiated when a notch ligand binds to a receptor on an adjacent cell, also...
2.1K
Notch Signaling Pathway03:14

Notch Signaling Pathway

The Notch signaling pathway is a major intracellular signaling pathway that is highly conserved over a broad spectrum of metazoan species. It stands unique from other intracellular signaling mechanisms in animals because notch protein itself acts as the receptor as well as the primary signaling molecule.
The Notch gene came into the limelight in 1914 after the discovery that its mutation in Drosophila melanogaster leads to a serrated (or "notched") wing margin phenotype. It was not...
4.3K
Interactions Between Signaling Pathways01:19

Interactions Between Signaling Pathways

Signaling cascades usually lack linearity. Multiple pathways interact and regulate one another, allowing cells to integrate and respond to diverse environmental stimuli.
Convergence and divergence, and cross-talk between signaling pathways
Two distinct signaling pathways can converge on a single functional unit, which may either be a single protein or a complex of proteins. The response is either functionally distinct or synergistic between the two pathways but different from the response...
6.3K
Microtubules in Signaling01:22

Microtubules in Signaling

The primary cilium, made up of microtubules, acts as antennae on the cell surfaces for relaying external stimuli into the cells. These fine hair-like structures are present, generally one per cell. These are non-motile cilia in a 9+0 microtubules arrangement, where the central pair of microtubules are absent. The primary cilia arise from the basal body embedded in the cell membrane. Intraflagellar transport (IFT) carries requisite proteins from the cytoplasm to the cilium because the primary...
1.7K
Canonical Wnt Signaling Pathway02:54

Canonical Wnt Signaling Pathway

The gene encoding the main signaling molecules of the Wnt signaling pathways (the Wnt proteins) was discovered almost four decades ago by Nüsslein-Volhard and Wieschaus. They identified and originally named the gene "wingless" (wg) after a phenotype discovered during their landmark genetic screen in Drosophila for body pattern defects. At around the same time, another researcher named Harold Varmus found that a murine tumor virus activates the mammalian wg homolog, Int-1, which...
8.8K
Regulation of Angiogenesis and Blood Supply01:24

Regulation of Angiogenesis and Blood Supply

Rapidly dividing tumors, embryos, and wounded tissues require more oxygen than usual, lowering the oxygen concentration in the blood. At low oxygen or hypoxic conditions, an oxygen-sensitive transcription factor called the hypoxia-inducible factor 1 or HIF1 is activated. HIF1 is a dimeric protein of alpha (ɑ) and beta (β) subunits.  Under optimal oxygen conditions, HIF1β is present in the nucleus while HIF1ɑ remains in the cytosol. HIF1ɑ is hydroxylated by prolyl...
2.6K