Section 3.3: The microenvironment of CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)

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Article	Targeting cancer stem cell pathways for cancer therapy (DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Sections in this Publication
Section	Section 1: Introduction (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 2: The concept of CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 2.1: Biological characteristics of CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 2.2: Isolation and identification of CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3: Factors regulating CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.1: Major transcription factors in CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.2: Major signaling pathways in CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.2.1: Wnt signaling pathway in CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.2.2: Notch signaling pathway in CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.2.3: Hh signaling pathway in CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.2.4: NF-kappaB signaling pathway in CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.2.5: JAK-STAT signaling pathway (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.2.6: TGF/SMAD signaling pathway in CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.2.7PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway in CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.2.8: PPAR signaling pathways in CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.2.9: Interactions between signaling pathways in CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.3: The microenvironment of CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.3.1: Vascular niche microenvironments and CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.3.2: The hypoxia microenvironment and CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.3.3: Tumor-associated macrophages and CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.3.4: Cancer-associated fibroblasts and CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.3.5: Cancer-associated MSCs and CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.3.6: Extracellular matrix and CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 3.3.7: Exosomes in the TME and CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 4: Therapeutic targeting of CSCs (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 4.1: Agents targeting CSC-associated surface biomarkers in clinical trials (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 4.2: Agents targeting CSC-associated signaling pathways in clinical trials (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 4.3: Targeting the CSC microenvironment (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 4.4: CSC-directed immunotherapy (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Section 5: Conclusions and perspectives (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Competing interests (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Section	Bibliography (from DOI: 10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5)
Named Entities in this Section

From publication: "Targeting cancer stem cell pathways for cancer therapy" published as Signal Transduct Target Ther; 2020 ; 5 8; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41392-020-0110-5

Section 3.3: The microenvironment of CSCs

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Figure 4: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7005297/bin/41392_2020_110_Fig4_HTML.jpg
Figure 4 caption: The microenvironment of cancer stem cells. Proliferation, self-renewal, differentiation, metastasis, and tumorigenesis of CSCs in the CSC microenvironment. The CSC microenvironment is mainly composed of vascular niches, hypoxia, tumor-associated macrophages, cancer-associated fibroblasts, cancer-associated mesenchymal stem cells, and extracellular matrix. These cells in response to hypoxic stress and matrix induce growth factors and cytokines (such as IL-6 and VEGF) to regulate the growth of CSCs via Wnt, Notch, and other signaling pathways

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CSCs interact with the microenvironment through adhesion molecules and paracrine factors. The microenvironment provides a suitable space for the self-renewal and differentiation of CSCs, protects CSCs from genotoxicity, and increases their chemical and radiological tolerance. The TME mainly consists of the tumor stroma, adjacent tissue cells, microvessels, immune cells, and immune molecules. CSCs not only adapt to changes in the TME but also affect the TME. Concurrently, the microenvironment also promotes the self-renewal of CSCs, induces angiogenesis, recruits immune and stromal cells, and promotes tumor invasion and metastasis (Fig. 4).