Understanding the Hedgehog Signaling Pathway in Acute Myeloid Leukemia Stem Cells: A Necessary Step toward a Cure

A better understanding of how signaling pathways govern cell fate is fundamental to advances in cancer development and treatment. The initialization of different tumors and their maintenance are caused by the deregulation of different signaling pathways and cancer stem cell maintenance. Quiescent st...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Biology (Basel, Switzerland) Switzerland), 2021-03, Vol.10 (4), p.255
Main Authors: Lainez-González, Daniel, Serrano-López, Juana, Alonso-Domínguez, Juan Manuel
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acute myeloid leukemia
acute myeloid leukemia (AML)
Cancer
Cell cycle
Cell fate
crosstalk
Genes
Hedgehog
Hedgehog protein
Hematopoietic stem cells
Kinases
Leukemia
leukemic stem cell
Ligands
Medical innovations
Mutation
Myeloid leukemia
Proteins
quiescence
Review
Signal transduction
Stem cells
Therapeutic targets
Transcription factors
Tumors
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Summary:A better understanding of how signaling pathways govern cell fate is fundamental to advances in cancer development and treatment. The initialization of different tumors and their maintenance are caused by the deregulation of different signaling pathways and cancer stem cell maintenance. Quiescent stem cells are resistant to conventional chemotherapeutic treatments and, consequently, are responsible for disease relapse. In this review we focus on the conserved Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway which is involved in regulating the cell cycle of hematopoietic and leukemic stem cells. Thus, we examine the role of the Hh signaling pathway in normal and leukemic stem cells and dissect its role in acute myeloid leukemia. We explain not only the connection between illness and the signaling pathway but also evaluate innovative therapeutic approaches that could affect the outcome of patients with acute myeloid leukemia. We found that many aspects of the Hedgehog signaling pathway remain unknown. The role of Hh has only been proven in embryo and hematopoietic stem cell development. Further research is needed to elucidate the role of GLI transcription factors for therapeutic targeting. Glasdegib, an SMO inhibitor, has shown clinical activity in acute myeloid leukemia; however, its mechanism of action is not clear.
ISSN:2079-7737
2079-7737
DOI:10.3390/biology10040255