Behaviour of mesenchymal stem cells from bone marrow of untreated advanced breast and lung cancer patients without bone osteolytic metastasis

FERNÁNDEZ VALLONE VB; HOFER EL; CHOI H; BORDENAVE R H; BATAGELJ E; FELDMAN L; LA RUSSA V; CARAMUTTI D; DIMASE F; LABOVSKY V; MARTINEZ LM; CHASSEING NA

CLINICAL & EXPERIMENTAL METASTASIS

SPRINGER

Lugar: Berlin; Año: 2013 vol. 30 p. 317 - 332

0262-0898

ABSTRACT Tumour cells can find in bone marrow (BM) a niche rich in growth factors and cytokines that promote their self-renewal, proliferation and survival. In turn, tumour cells affect the homeostasis of the BM and bone, as well as the balance among haematopoiesis, osteogenesis, osteoclastogenesis and bone-resorption. As a result, growth and survival factors normally sequestered in the bone matrix are released, favouring tumour development. Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs) from BM can become tumour-associated fibroblasts, have immunosuppressive function, and facilitate metastasis by epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition. Moreover, MSCs generate osteoblasts and osteocytes and regulate osteoclastogenesis. Therefore, MSCs can play an important pro-tumorigenic role in the formation of a microenvironment that promotes BM and bone metastasis. In this study we showed that BM-MSCs from breast and lung cancer patients (BCPs and LCPs, respectively) had low osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation capacity compared to that of healthy volunteers (HVs). In contrast, chondrogenic differentiation was increased. Moreover, MSCs from patients had lower expression of CD146. Finally, our data showed higher levels of Dkk-1 in peripheral blood plasma from patients compared with HV. Because no patient had any bone disorder by the time of the study we propose that the primary tumour altered the plasticity of MSCs. As over 70% of advanced BCPs and 30-40% of LCPs will develop osteolytic bone metastasis for which there is no total cure, our findings could possibly be used as predictive tools indicating the first signs of future bone disease. In addition, as the MSCs present in the BM of these patients may not be able to regenerate bone after the tumour cells invasion into BM/bone, it is possible that they promote the cycle between tumour cell growth and bone destruction.(paper on-line= DOI 10.1007/s10585-012-9539-4)