外基因组:癌症免疫疗法中的双刃剑

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are adult stem cells that can differentiate into most connective tissue cell types, except for hematopoietic cells, depending upon the source of MSCs. For example, bone-marrow-derived MSCs (BM-MSCs) can differentiate into osteocytes, hepatocytes, and pancreatic and neuronal cells. MSCs can be isolated from various sources such as bone marrow, placenta, adipose tissue, teeth, and Wharton’s jelly, a gelatinous substance in the umbilical cord. The ease of their...

Cancer treatment vaccines are a rapidly evolving field that offers a promising approach to immunotherapy. Unlike traditional vaccines that prevent diseases, cancer treatment vaccines are designed to treat existing cancers by stimulating the immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells.
Cancer vaccines come in two categories: preventive (prophylactic) and treatment (active). Preventive vaccines, such as the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, protect against viruses that cause certain...

Early diagnosis and treatment can often cure cancer. However, even with treatment, residual cells called cancer stem cells (CSC) might remain, often causing tumor recurrence. These cancer stem cells possess the potential for self-renewal and multi-lineage differentiation and are often responsible for the therapeutic resistance displayed in most cancers.
Cancer stem cells are thought to originate from tissue-specific normal stem cells or progenitor cells. The normal stem cells usually reside in...

Every normal cell or tissue is embedded in a complex local environment called stroma, consisting of different cell types, a basal membrane, and blood vessels. As normal cells mutate and develop into cancer cells, their local environment also changes to allow cancer progression. The tumor microenvironment (TME) consists of a complex cellular matrix of stromal cells and the developing tumor. The cross-talk between cancer cells and surrounding stromal cells is critical to disrupt normal tissue...