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BMC Cancer

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Open Access 01-12-2012 | Research article

Human pancreatic adenocarcinoma contains a side population resistant to gemcitabine

Authors: Anke Van den broeck, Lies Gremeaux, Baki Topal, Hugo Vankelecom

Published in: BMC Cancer | Issue 1/2012

Abstract

Background

Therapy resistance remains one of the major challenges to improve the prognosis of patients with pancreatic cancer. Chemoresistant cells, which potentially also display cancer stem cell (CSC) characteristics, can be isolated using the side population (SP) technique. Our aim was to search for a SP in human pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) and to examine its chemoresistance and CSC(−like) phenotype.

Methods

Human PDAC samples were expanded in immunodeficient mice and first-generation xenografts analyzed for the presence of a Hoechst dye-effluxing SP using flow cytometry (FACS). To investigate chemoresistance of the SP, mice bearing PDAC xenografts were treated with gemcitabine and SP proportion determined. In addition, the SP and the main tumour cell population (MP) were sorted by FACS for RNA extraction to profile gene expression, and for culturing under sphere-forming conditions.

Results

A SP was identified in all PDAC samples, analyzed. This SP was more resistant to gemcitabine than the other tumour cells as examined in vivo. Whole-genome expression profiling of the SP revealed upregulation of genes related to therapy resistance, apoptotic regulation and epithelial-mesenchymal transition. In addition, the SP displayed higher tumourigenic (CSC) activity than the MP as analyzed in vitro by sphere-forming capacity.

Conclusion

We identified a SP in human PDAC and uncovered a chemoresistant and CSC-associated phenotype. This SP may represent a new therapeutic target in pancreatic cancer.

Trial registration

Clinicaltrials.gov NCT00936104

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The pre-publication history for this paper can be accessed here:http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2407/12/354/prepub

Title: Human pancreatic adenocarcinoma contains a side population resistant to gemcitabine
Authors: Anke Van den broeck
Lies Gremeaux
Baki Topal
Hugo Vankelecom
Publication date: 01-12-2012
Publisher: BioMed Central
Published in: BMC Cancer / Issue 1/2012
Electronic ISSN: 1471-2407
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2407-12-354

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