Stem Cells and Cancer (R21)

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Purpose. This funding opportunity announcement (FOA), issued by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), and the National Institute on Aging (NIA), encourages research in all aspects of tumor stem cell biology, including the molecular and biochemical regulation of embryonic and adult stem cell behavior relevant to tumor formation. Tumor stem cells are a rare population of cells that can recapitulate all the cell types represented in the original tumor. Tumor stem cells are capable of self-renewal and asymmetric cell division. These cells are putatively responsible for the transplantability and metastatic properties of tumors. This FOA intends to stimulate efforts on isolation and characterization of tumor stem cells from a large spectrum of tumors. Such studies are important in order to understand the progression of malignant diseases. They may also inspire the development of new therapeutic strategies based on specific targeting of tumor stem cells. In addition, more research is encouraged to understand the genetic and biochemical regulatory mechanisms that control the self-renewal phenotype, asymmetric cell division, and the stem cell microenvironment (or niche). It is anticipated that the results of such research will ultimately improve the specificity and long-term effectiveness of cancer therapy.

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