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Identification of cancer stem-like cells in the C6 glioma cell line and the limitation of current identification methods

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Abstract

The cancer stem cell (CSC) hypothesis has provided insights into the initiation and recurrence of brain tumor. Specific identification and targeted elimination of these CSCs within the tumor mass represents a promising therapeutic strategy for refractory brain tumors. In this study, we attempted to identify CSCs in the rat C6 glioma cell line by three different identification methods. It is interesting to note that single-cell clonal analysis showed most C6 cells are cancer stem-like cells with characteristics of self-renewal, multilineage differentiation potentials in vitro, and tumorigenic capacity in vivo. It is surprising to note that CD133 failed to identify the total cancer stem-like cell population in the C6 line, since both CD133 (+) and CD133 (−) C6 cells have cancer stem-like cell fractions. Moreover, Hoechst 33342 staining, which is used in flow cytometry to isolate the side population (SP), was found to be harmful to C6 cells. Therefore, CD133 (−) and non-SP C6 cells may also harbor cancer stem-like cells. These results imply the limitation of using current identification methods in C6 line and underscore the importance of defining the genetic and molecular basis of CSCs.

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Acknowledgments

We appreciate the technical expertise of Dr. Jiaping Peng and Dr. Qi Dong. This research was funded by the Natural Science Foundation of China (30772243). All authors declare that they have no competing financial interests.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurosurgery, First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, 79 Qingchun Road, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, People’s Republic of China, 310031

    Xuesheng Zheng, Liang Wen & Xiaofeng Yang

  2. Institute of Brain Medicine, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, 79 Qingchun Road, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, People’s Republic of China, 310031

    Gang Shen, Fang Shen, Zhuojin Shi, Weiguo Liu & Weiwei Hu

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  1. Gang Shen
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  2. Fang Shen
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  3. Zhuojin Shi
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  4. Weiguo Liu
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  5. Weiwei Hu
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  6. Xuesheng Zheng
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  7. Liang Wen
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  8. Xiaofeng Yang
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Xiaofeng Yang.

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Editor: J. Denry Sato

Gang Shen and Fang Shen contributed equally to this work and thus are regarded as the cofirst author.

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Shen, G., Shen, F., Shi, Z. et al. Identification of cancer stem-like cells in the C6 glioma cell line and the limitation of current identification methods. In Vitro Cell.Dev.Biol.-Animal 44, 280–289 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11626-008-9115-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11626-008-9115-z

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