http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4571-1060
![Sample our Medicine, Dentistry, Nursing & Allied Health journals, sign in here to start your FREE access for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/5944/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Medicine-Dentistry-Nursing-Allied-Health.jpg"})
ABSTRACT
The growth and recurrence of a number of cancers is driven by a scarce population of cancer stem cells (CSCs), which are resistant to most current therapies. It has been shown previously that natural killer (NK) cells recognize human glioma, melanoma, colon and prostate CSCs in vitro. We herein show that human and mouse breast CSCs are also susceptible to NK cytotoxic activity in vitro. Moreover, CSC induced autologous NK cell activation and expansion in vivo, which correlate with the inhibition of CSC metastatic spread. These data suggest that NK cells control CSC metastatic spread in vivo and that their use in breast cancer therapy may well be fruitful.
Supplementary material
Supplemental data for this article can be accessed on the publisher's website.
Disclosure of potential conflicts of interest
No potential conflicts of interest were disclosed.
Funding
This work was supported by grants from the Italian Association for Cancer Research (IG 15521 to E. C.; IG 16724 to F. C), Ministry of Health grant “Progetto ricerca finalizzata 2011-2012” grant CO-2011-02348049, Wenner-Gren Stiftelserna, Sweden to E.C. and the University of Torino. R.T. was supported by FIRC Fellowship “Luciana Selce” and University Magna Graecia of Catanzaro. L.C. was supported with a fellowship from the “Fondazione Umberto Veronesi”. R.S. is a recipient of a fellowship from the Foundation Blanceflor Boncompagni Ludovisi, née Bildt. We thank Dr. Dale Lawson for his revision and editing of the manuscript.