Cancer stem cells are defined as a self-renewing and self-protecting subpopulation of cancer cells able to differentiate into morphologically and functionally diverse cancer cells with a limited lifespan. To purify cancer stem cells, two basic approaches can be applied, the marker-based approach employing various more of less-specific cell surface marker molecules and a marker-free approach largely based on various self-protection mechanisms. Within the context of urothelial carcinoma, both methods could find use. The cell surface markers have been mainly derived from the urothelial basal cell, a probable cell of origin of muscle-invasive urothelial carcinoma, with CD14, CD44, CD90, and 67LR representing successful examples of this strategy. The marker-free approaches involve side population sorting, for which a detailed protocol is provided, as well as the Aldefluor assay, which rely on a specific overexpression of efflux pumps or the detoxification enzyme aldehyde dehydrogenase, respectively, in stem cells. These assays have been applied to both non-muscle-invasive and muscle-invasive bladder cancer samples and cell lines. Urothelial carcinoma stem cells feature a pronounced heterogeneity as to their molecular stemness mechanisms. Several aspects of urothelial cancer stem cell biology could enter translational development rather soon, e.g., a specific CD44+-derived gene expression signature able to identify non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer patients with a high risk of progression, or deciphering a mechanism responsible for repopulating activity of urothelial carcinoma stem cells within the context of therapeutic resistance.

• Klíčová slova
• Cancer stem cells, Drug resistance, Side population, Urothelial carcinoma, Urothelial carcinoma cells of origin, Urothelial carcinoma stem cell markers, Urothelial regeneration, Urothelium stem cells,
• MeSH
• biologické markery MeSH
• heterografty MeSH
• imunofenotypizace MeSH
• kmenové buňky cytologie   metabolismus   MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• modely nemocí na zvířatech MeSH
• myši transgenní MeSH
• myši MeSH
• nádorové biomarkery MeSH
• nádorové buněčné linie MeSH
• nádorové kmenové buňky metabolismus   patologie   MeSH
• průtoková cytometrie MeSH
• separace buněk metody   MeSH
• testy nádorových kmenových buněk MeSH
• urologické nádory metabolismus   patologie   MeSH
• urotel cytologie   metabolismus   MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• myši MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH
• Názvy látek
• biologické markery MeSH
• nádorové biomarkery MeSH