PTEN, Stem Cells, and Cancer Stem Cells

Like normal stem cells, cancer stem cells have the capacity for indefinite proliferation and generation of new cancerous tissues through self-renewal and differentiation. Among the major intracellular signaling pathways, WNT, SHH, and NOTCH are known to be important in regulating normal stem cell activities, and their alterations are associated with tumorigenesis. It has become clear recently that PTEN (phosphatase and tensin homologue) is also critical for stem cell maintenance and that PTEN loss can cause the development of cancer stem cells and ultimately tumorigenesis.