Cutaneous melanoma still represents a significant health burden worldwide, being responsible for the majority of skin cancer deaths. Key advances in therapeutic strategies have significantly improved patient outcomes; however, most patients experience drug resistance and tumor relapse. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are a small subpopulation of cells in different tumors, including melanoma, endowed with distinctive capacities of self-renewal and differentiation into bulk tumor cells. Melanoma CSCs are characterized by the expression of specific biomarkers and intracellular pathways; moreover, they play a pivotal role in tumor onset, progression and drug resistance. In recent years, great efforts have been made to dissect the molecular mechanisms underlying the protumor activities of melanoma CSCs to provide the basis for novel CSC-targeted therapies. Herein, we highlight the intricate crosstalk between melanoma CSCs and bystander cells in the tumor microenvironment (TME), including immune cells, endothelial cells and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), and its role in melanoma progression. Specifically, we discuss the peculiar capacities of melanoma CSCs to escape the host immune surveillance, to recruit immunosuppressive cells and to educate immune cells toward an immunosuppressive and protumor phenotype. We also address currently investigated CSC-targeted strategies that could pave the way for new promising therapeutic approaches for melanoma care.

Unveiling the Dynamic Interplay between Cancer Stem Cells and the Tumor Microenvironment in Melanoma: Implications for Novel Therapeutic Strategies / P. Limonta, R. Chiaramonte, L. Casati. - In: CANCERS. - ISSN 2072-6694. - 16:16(2024 Aug 16), pp. 2861.1-2861.36. [10.3390/cancers16162861]

Unveiling the Dynamic Interplay between Cancer Stem Cells and the Tumor Microenvironment in Melanoma: Implications for Novel Therapeutic Strategies

P. Limonta
Primo
;
R. Chiaramonte
Penultimo
;
L. Casati
Ultimo
2024

Abstract

Cutaneous melanoma still represents a significant health burden worldwide, being responsible for the majority of skin cancer deaths. Key advances in therapeutic strategies have significantly improved patient outcomes; however, most patients experience drug resistance and tumor relapse. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are a small subpopulation of cells in different tumors, including melanoma, endowed with distinctive capacities of self-renewal and differentiation into bulk tumor cells. Melanoma CSCs are characterized by the expression of specific biomarkers and intracellular pathways; moreover, they play a pivotal role in tumor onset, progression and drug resistance. In recent years, great efforts have been made to dissect the molecular mechanisms underlying the protumor activities of melanoma CSCs to provide the basis for novel CSC-targeted therapies. Herein, we highlight the intricate crosstalk between melanoma CSCs and bystander cells in the tumor microenvironment (TME), including immune cells, endothelial cells and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), and its role in melanoma progression. Specifically, we discuss the peculiar capacities of melanoma CSCs to escape the host immune surveillance, to recruit immunosuppressive cells and to educate immune cells toward an immunosuppressive and protumor phenotype. We also address currently investigated CSC-targeted strategies that could pave the way for new promising therapeutic approaches for melanoma care.
CSC markers; CSC-TME interplay; CSC-targeted therapies; bidirectional cell-to-cell communication; cancer stem cells (CSCs); melanoma; tumor microenvironment (TME);
Settore MEDS-02/A - Patologia generale
Settore BIOS-10/A - Biologia cellulare e applicata
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16-ago-2024
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2434/1123966
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