Cancer stem cells represent a novel therapeutic target. The major challenge in targeting leukemic stem cells (LSC) is finding therapies that largely spare normal hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) while eradicating quiescent LSCs. We present a mathematical model to predict how selective a therapy must be to ensure that enough HSCs survive when LSCs have been eradicated. Stem cell population size is...

Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is initially driven by the bcr-abl fusion oncoprotein. The identification of bcr-abl led to the discovery and rapid translation into the clinic of bcr-abl kinase inhibitors. Although, bcr-abl inhibitors are efficacious, experimental evidence indicates that targeting bcr-abl is not sufficient for elimination of minimal residual disease found within the bone marrow ...

Despite huge improvements in the treatment of leukemia, the percentage of patients suffering relapse still remains significant. Relapse most often results from a small number of leukemic stem cells (LSCs) within the bone marrow, which are able to self-renew, and therefore reestablish the full tumor. The marrow microenvironment contributes considerably in supporting the protection and developmen...

Background: As a T helper type 1 (Th1) derived cytokine, Interferon gamma (IFN-γ) is an important regulator of inflammatory immune responses. Furthermore, IFN-γ plays an essential role in defense against tumors and intracellular pathogens. This study was designed to assess the pattern of IFN-γ production in human leukemic (Jurkat and Molt-4) T cell lines in vitro. Methods: Ju...

OBJECTIVE Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are a heterogenous group of clonal hematopoietic stem cell disorders characterized by increased risk of leukemic transformation. This study identifies microRNAs(miRNA) and miRNA targets that might represent leukemic transformation markers for MDS. METHODS Based on our previously established nested case-control study cohort of MDS patients, we chose pa...

Although the concept of a leukemic stem cell system has recently been well accepted, its nature and the underlying molecular mechanisms remain obscure. Constitutive activation of signal transducers and activators of transcription 3 (STAT3) and STAT5 is frequently detected in various hematopoietic tumors. To evaluate their role in normal and leukemic stem cells, we took advantage of constitutive...

Kumari and colleagues have recently reported a detailed analysis of BCR-ABL expression in CFU-Cs (colony forming units in culture) of patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML).1 Using quantitative reverse-transcription PCR on individual Ph1 hematopoietic colonies, they demonstrated that CFU-Cs from patients in major molecular response (MMR) displayed lower BCR-ABL mRNA expression than CFU-Cs...

the clinical potentials of stem cells in cell-based therapies have raised great hopes in diabetes mellitus as well. however, there are complex ethical, legal, and socio-cultural issues surrounding the subject. in this paper, we intend to review in brief the main ethical issues for endocrinologists and other clinicians who are interested and work in the field of cell therapy and research.

Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is a clonal multi-step myeloproliferative disease that is initially produced and ultimately sustained by a rare subpopulation of BCR-ABL+ cells with multi-lineage stem cell properties. These BCR-ABL+ CML stem cells are phenotypically similar to normal hematopoietic stem cells which are also maintained throughout the course of the disease at varying levels in diffe...