To date, no effective therapy is available for patients with thyroid carcinoma (TC). The sodium/iodine symporter (NIS), an effective non-invasive treatment for TC, is typically not expressed by TC metastases, and radioactive iodine does not work on these tissues. Therefore, it is necessary to create experimental animal models to clarify the fundamental processes underlying tumorigenesis and metastasis formation, especially to develop treatments for patients who are resistant to radioiodine therapy.
Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) were found to have the recapitulating ability to clarify the cellular hierarchy of the thyroid gland, according to a recent Nature Communications study. The CRISPR-based genetic editing technique allowed these cells to replicate the oncogenic process as well.Follicular cell-derived TCs are typically created from histologically differentiated and undifferentiated subtypes of follicular epithelial cells derived from impaired endodermal layers. The common papillary (PTC) and follicular (FTC) TCs are examples of differentiated TCs. Differentiated TCs typically have benign outcomes and are docile tumors. Differentiated TCs did, however, occasionally exhibit a high propensity for relapse and even result in fatalities.
Adjacent tissues are invaded by anaplastic TC (ATC), which exhibits aggressive behavior by metastasizing to distant organs. About 2% of all TC cases fall under this category. ATC is produced from the follicular thyroid epithelium gland either through the removal of biological characteristics related to iodine uptake or through the de-differentiation of an already differentiated TC that has undergone multiple mutations.
Mammal tissue-specific stem cells that are capable of self-restoration and differentiation are linked to tissue repair and homeostasis. Studies on the hierarchical structure of adult tissue have made significant contributions to the aging process, injury recovery, and prevention of cells from accumulating damage that may lead to cancer.
The idea of tumorigenesis was first introduced using a progenitor cell-based model. Considering stem cells’ longevity and ability to regenerate on their own, which is necessary for amassing mutations, this model assumed that stem cells were the origin of tumor formation. It is essential to create a genetic mutation model that includes various mutations within the same “target cell” in order to better understand the various histopathology and behavior.
Despite the fact that scientists have identified a specific subpopulation of cancer stem cells (CSCs)/progenitor cells
