Tumor Suppressors and Stem Cell Biology

描述(由申请人提供)：本提案旨在请求支持将于2008年2月24-29日在加拿大不列颠哥伦比亚省举行的题为“肿瘤抑制者和干细胞生物学”的Keystone研讨会，该会议由肖恩·J·莫里森和亚历杭德罗·S·恩切斯·阿尔瓦拉多组织。干细胞在所有已知的多细胞生物体的发育、维持和繁殖中起着关键作用。干细胞在从动态平衡到再生的各种生物学环境中运作，必须受到复杂而有力的监管。最近的证据表明，最初被发现具有抑制肿瘤形成能力的肿瘤抑制机制，在干细胞的生理调节中也发挥着广泛的作用。肿瘤抑制因子在调节组织内环境平衡、干细胞自我更新、再生和衰老等方面发挥着重要作用。这揭示了干细胞调控和癌细胞调控之间的机制联系，这些调控可能被用于靶向癌症和促进再生。这些机制在干细胞和癌症生物学中的双重作用阐明了促进再生和抑制癌症之间的进化平衡。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This proposal is to request support for a Keystone Symposia meeting entitled "Tumor Suppressors and Stem Cell Biology", organized by Sean J. Morrison and Alejandro S nchez Alvarado, which will be held in British Columbia, Canada from February 24 - 29, 2008. Stem cells play key roles in the development, maintenance, and reproduction of all known multicellular organisms. Stem cells operate in a wide variety of biological contexts from homeostasis to regeneration and must be subject to complex and robust regulation. Recent evidence suggests that tumor suppressor mechanisms, originally discovered for their ability to inhibit tumorigenesis, also play widespread roles in the physiological regulation of stem cells. Tumor suppressors play critical roles in the regulation of tissue homeostasis, stem cell self-renewal, regeneration, and aging. This reveals mechanistic links between the regulation of stem cells, and the regulation of cancer cells that could potentially be exploited to target cancer and to enhance regeneration. The dual roles of these mechanisms in stem cell and cancer biology illuminate the evolved balance between the promotion of regeneration and the suppression of cancer.