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Adipocyte Stem Cells Influence Self-renewal of Breast Cancer Stem Cells
Riesa Burnett, Stefanie Merfeld-Clauss , William Wooden, Keith March, Harikrishna Nakshatri
Indiana University School of Medicine Plastic Surgery
2013-03-15
Presenter: Riesa Burnett
Affidavit:
Director Name: John Coleman
Author Category: Resident Plastic Surgery
Presentation Category: Basic Science Research
Abstract Category: Breast (Aesthetic and Recon.)
Reconstruction after breast cancer surgery is constantly evolving. Autologous fat transplantation is a means of achieving satisfactory cosmetic results without using synthetic or allograft materials. Given the discovery of multipotent stem cells in a variety of tissues including adipose, and the influence of these stem cells on growth and differentiation of surrounding cells through paracrine effects, it is logical to ask whether transplanted adipose stem cells affect proliferation/survival of residual/dormant cancer cells when placed in a former tumor bed. In vitro modeling was established to test this possibility. Adipocyte stem cells (ASCs) isolated from three individuals , "normal" breast epithelial cells (MCF10A), and a SRC oncogene transformed MCF10A (MCF10A-ER-SRC) cells were examined for their ability to form mammospheres (a self-renewal assay) either individually or in combination. MCF10A and MCF10A-ER-SRC cells expressed green fluorescence protein (GFP) to distinguish breast epithelial cells from adipocytes in the mammosphere. After 7-10 days in culture, plates were examined for the number and size of spheres formed, presence of fluorescence, and cell surface markers. Co-culturing with ASCs did not increase the number of spheres formed, but increased the size of spheres indicating a paracrine effect on self-renewal of breast stem cells. ASCs cultured under mammopshere conditions formed adipospheres. Adipospheres and mammospheres displayed common cell surface markers except EpCAM. These results raise the possibility of engrafted adipose cells reactivating dormant cancer cells. Further studies are required to identify factors that influence self-renewal of breast cancer stem cells.
