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Cell Fusion Hypothesis of the Cancer Stem Cell

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Cell Fusion in Health and Disease

Part of the book series: Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology ((AEMB,volume 950))

Abstract

A major advance in recent cancer research is the identification of tumor cells with stem cell-like properties. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) often represent a rare population in the tumor mass and possess the exclusive ability to initiate the growth of a heterogeneous tumor. The origin of CSCs remains elusive and is likely to be cancer type specific. One possible but under-appreciated potential mechanism for the generation of CSCs is through fusion between stem cells and differentiated cells. The cell fusion hypothesis of CSCs adds an important functional underpinning to the potential multifaceted roles of cell fusion in the initiation and progression of cancer.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, 08544, USA

    Xin Lu & Yibin Kang

  2. Breast Cancer Program, The Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ, 08903, USA

    Yibin Kang

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Correspondence to Yibin Kang .

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  1. Inst. Immunologie, Universität Witten/Herdecke, Stockumer Str. 10, Witten, 58448, Germany

    Thomas Dittmar

  2. Institute of Immunologie, University of Witten/Herdecke, Stockumer Str. 10, Witten, 58448, Germany

    Kurt S. Zänker

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© 2011 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

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Lu, X., Kang, Y. (2011). Cell Fusion Hypothesis of the Cancer Stem Cell. In: Dittmar, T., Zänker, K. (eds) Cell Fusion in Health and Disease. Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology, vol 950. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-0782-5_6

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