NF-κB signaling in cancer stem cells: a promising therapeutic target?
- 29 August 2015
- journal article
- review article
- Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in Cellular Oncology
- Vol. 38 (5), 327-339
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s13402-015-0236-6
Abstract
Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are regulated by several signaling pathways that ultimately control their maintenance and expansion. NF-κB (nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells) forms a protein complex that controls DNA transcription and, as such, plays an important role in proliferation, inflammation, angiogenesis, invasion and metastasis. The NF-κB signaling pathway, which has been found to be constitutively activated in CSCs from a variety of cancers, participates in the maintenance, expansion, proliferation and survival of CSCs. Targeted disruption of this pathway may profoundly impair the adverse phenotype of CSCs and may provide a therapeutic opportunity to remove the CSC fraction. In particular, it may be attractive to use specific NF-κB inhibitors in chronic therapeutic schemes to reduce disease progression. Exceptional low toxicity profiles of these inhibitors are a prerequisite for use in combined treatment regimens and to avoid resistance. Although still preliminary, recent evidence shows that such targeted strategies may be useful in adjuvant chemo-preventive settings.Keywords
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