Identification of differentially expressed miRNAs in exosomes secreted from human colon cancer stem cells.

As accumulating evidence suggests cancer cells exhibit stem-like properties for advanced diseases and cancer stem cells (CSCs) have been identified in various tumor types, revisiting present knowledge toward CSCs is essential. The identification of exosome-loaded miRNAs responsible for stemness and chemoradioresistance of CSCs should eventually leadd to development of novel therapeutic approaches. Expression profiles of miRNAs of purified exosomes from parental HCT15/29 cells and HCT15/29-derived cancer spheres were generated for identifying central miRNAs for CSC malignancy.