Cedric Blanpain

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..Finally, we will discuss how similar mechanisms operate in cancer stem cells (CSCs) and can mediate resistance to chemo- and radiotherapy...

..Our studies uncover the cells at the origin of BCC in mice and demonstrate that expression of differentiation markers in tumour cells is not necessarily predictive of the cancer initiating cells...

..Because NHEJ is an error-prone mechanism, this novel characteristic of adult SCs may have important implications in cancer development and ageing...

..After wounding, only stem cells contribute substantially to the repair and long-term regeneration of the tissue, whereas committed progenitor cells make a limited contribution...

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..Our studies demonstrate that different epidermal lineages including bulge SC are competent to initiate papilloma formation and that multiple genetic hits in the context of oncogenic KRas are required for the development of invasive SCC...

..Our results uncover the cellular hierarchy acting during prostate development and will be instrumental in defining the cellular origin and the mechanisms underlying prostate cancer initiation...

..This study presents the first experimental evidence for the existence of CSCs during unperturbed solid tumour growth...

..Our results illustrate the progressive increase of squamous skin TPCs with tumour progression and invasiveness and reveal that serial transplantation may be required to define the long-term renewal potential of TPCs...

..Finally, deletion of Nrp1 in normal epidermis prevents skin tumour initiation. These results may have important implications for the prevention and treatment of skin cancers...

..Our study identifies the early MCPs residing at the top of the cellular hierarchy of cardiovascular lineages during ESC differentiation...

..Deletion of β-catenin in adult SmoM2-expressing cells prevents EHFP reprogramming and tumour initiation. Finally, human basal cell carcinomas also express genes of the Wnt signalling and EHFP signatures...

..Our data reveal a major difference in the requirement of BRCA1 between different types of epidermal SCs and progenitors and during the different activation stages of adult HF SCs...

..These results place Eomes upstream of the Mesp1-dependent programme of cardiogenesis, and at the intersection of mesodermal and endodermal specification, depending on the levels of Activin/Nodal signalling...

..We therefore suggest that transmembrane helices 2 and 3 contain important structural elements for the activation mechanism of chemokine receptors, and possibly other related receptors as well...

..Our study demonstrates that MCs arise from the epidermis by an Atoh1-dependent mechanism and opens new avenues for study of MC functions in sensory perception, neuroendocrine signaling, and MC carcinoma...

..These results suggest the existence of multiple active conformations of CCR5 and indicate that CCR5 oligomers are involved in an internalization process that is distinct from that induced by the receptor's agonists...

..A mouse model incriminates the serotonin 5-HT(2B) receptor but contrasts with other models where this receptor has been shown to mediate pulmonary arterial relaxation via nitric oxide production...

..Deregulation of the signaling pathways controlling the balance between renewal and differentiation often leads to cancer formation...

..This technique has been instrumental in characterizing the origin and heterogeneity of epithelial SCs, their tissue location, and their differentiation potential under physiological conditions and during tissue regeneration...

..The organizers gathered together an impressive panel of speakers to discuss various aspects of stem-cell biology from early development to adult homeostasis, as well as the implications of stem cells for human diseases...

..Modified chemokines, monoclonal antibodies and small chemical antagonists, as well as a number of gene therapy approaches have been developed in this frame...

..In addition, these findings will be very useful to boost the production of cardiovascular cells for cellular therapy, drug and toxicity screening...

..Disclosure of potential conflicts of interest is found at the end of this article...

..Interestingly, the basic mechanisms and signalling pathways that orchestrate epithelial morphogenesis in the skin are reused during adult life to regulate skin homeostasis...

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..In this review, we will discuss the importance of these papers to our understanding of the mechanisms that control epidermal SC functions...

..In this issue of Cell Stem Cell, Nishimura et al. (2010) show that hair follicle stem cells, by expressing high levels of TGF-beta2, regulate the quiescence, the stemness, and the long-term renewal of melanocyte stem cells...

..Our results demonstrate that Mesp1 acts as a key regulatory switch during cardiovascular specification, residing at the top of the hierarchy of the gene network responsible for cardiovascular cell-fate determination...