Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2013 May 7;19(17):2603-11.
doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i17.2603.

CD133: a cancer stem cells marker, is used in colorectal cancers

Fei Ren  1 , Wei-Qi Sheng, Xiang Du
Affiliations
Review

CD133: a cancer stem cells marker, is used in colorectal cancers

Fei Ren et al. World J Gastroenterol. .

Abstract

Colorectal cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors worldwide. A model of cancer development involving cancer stem cells has been put forward because it provides a possible explanation of tumor hierarchy. Cancer stem cells are characterized by their proliferation, tumorigenesis, differentiation, and self-renewal capacities, and chemoradiotherapy resistance. Due to the role of cancer stem cells in tumor initiation and treatment failure, studies of cancer stem cell markers, such as CD133, have been of great interest. CD133, a five-transmembrane glycoprotein, is widely used as a marker to identify and isolate colorectal cancer stem cells. This marker has been investigated to better understand the characteristics and functions of cancer stem cells. Moreover, it can also be used to predict tumor progression, patient survival, chemoradiotherapy resistance and other clinical parameters. In this review, we discuss the use of CD133 in the identification of colorectal cancer stem cell, which is currently controversial. Although the function of CD133 is as yet unclear, we have discussed several possible functions and associated mechanisms that may partially explain the role of CD133 in colorectal cancers. In addition, we focus on the prognostic value of CD133 in colorectal cancers. Finally, we predict that CD133 may be used as a possible target for colorectal cancer treatment.

Keywords: CD133; Cancer stem cells; Chemoradiotherapy resistance; Colorectal cancer; Prognosis.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Yin AH, Miraglia S, Zanjani ED, Almeida-Porada G, Ogawa M, Leary AG, Olweus J, Kearney J, Buck DW. AC133, a novel marker for human hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells. Blood. 1997;90:5002–5012. - PubMed
    1. Yu Y, Flint A, Dvorin EL, Bischoff J. AC133-2, a novel isoform of human AC133 stem cell antigen. J Biol Chem. 2002;277:20711–20716. - PubMed
    1. Clarke MF, Dick JE, Dirks PB, Eaves CJ, Jamieson CH, Jones DL, Visvader J, Weissman IL, Wahl GM. Cancer stem cells--perspectives on current status and future directions: AACR Workshop on cancer stem cells. Cancer Res. 2006;66:9339–9344. - PubMed
    1. Wu N, Xiao L, Zhao X, Zhao J, Wang J, Wang F, Cao S, Lin X. miR-125b regulates the proliferation of glioblastoma stem cells by targeting E2F2. FEBS Lett. 2012;586:3831–3839. - PubMed
    1. Schneider M, Huber J, Hadaschik B, Siegers GM, Fiebig HH, Schüler J. Characterization of colon cancer cells: a functional approach characterizing CD133 as a potential stem cell marker. BMC Cancer. 2012;12:96. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types