Characteristics of CD44 and CD24-marked Cervical Cancer Cells Subgroups

Objective To investigate the enrichment feasibility of cancer stem cells(CSC) in CD44⁺/CD24⁺Siha cells.

Methods CD44⁺/CD24⁺Siha cells were acquired by flow cytometry. The capacities of cells spherical clusters of CD44⁺/CD24⁺Siha cells and parent Siha cells were observed. Tumor xenografts tests were used to evaluate tumor-forming ability. The changes of cells morphology of the two groups after irradiation were observed by transmission electron microscopy. Migration and invasiveness were assessed by Transwell tests.

Results The proportion of CD44⁺/CD24⁺ cells in radioresistant cells was higher than that in parent Siha cells. Compared with parent cells, CD44⁺/CD24⁺Siha cells cultured in serum free environment can form more compacted and larger-volume cell clusters. Not only the time to form tumors is shorter but also the efficiency is higher in the CD44⁺/CD24⁺Siha cells than parent cells. The irradiated CD44⁺/CD24⁺Siha cells show the higher ability to resist apoptosis than their parent cells. The migration cell numbers in CD44⁺/CD24⁺ cells are much more than those in parent cells. All data are statistically significant.

Conclusion The CD44⁺/CD24⁺Siha cells exhibit the characteristics of stem cells and maybe as a surface marker for the identification of stem cells from cervical cancer cells.