The cells that surround tumours can influence tumour growth and response to therapy. In new research, ChuanJie Zhang and colleagues report the identification of a subset of pericytes that sustain the proliferation of cancer stem cells (CSCs) in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) and promote tumour resistance to tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs).

PDGFRβ⁺GPR91⁺ pericytes, identified by single-cell RNA sequencing, were significantly enriched in ccRCC tumours compared to their levels in non-malignant adjacent kidney tissue. Moreover, PDGFRβ⁺GPR91⁺ frequency was associated with poorer outcomes and reduced sensitivity to TKI therapy. These findings were confirmed in mouse models of ccRCC, demonstrating that PDGFRβ⁺GPR91⁺ pericytes support tumour growth through the maintenance of CSCs, are themselves resistant to TKIs and also render tumours resistant to TKIs.

肿瘤周围的细胞可以影响肿瘤的生长和对治疗的反应。在新的研究中，ChuanJie Zhang 及其同事报告了在透明细胞肾细胞癌 (ccRCC) 中维持癌症干细胞 (CSC) 增殖并促进肿瘤对酪氨酸激酶抑制剂 (TKI) 耐药性的周细胞子集的鉴定。

通过单细胞 RNA 测序鉴定， PDGFRβ ⁺ GPR91 ⁺周细胞在 ccRCC 肿瘤中显着富集，与非恶性相邻肾组织中的水平相比显着富集。此外，PDGFRβ ⁺ GPR91 ⁺频率与较差的结果和对 TKI 治疗的敏感性降低相关。这些发现在 ccRCC 小鼠模型中得到证实，表明 PDGFRβ ⁺ GPR91 ⁺周细胞通过维持 CSC 支持肿瘤生长，其本身对 TKI 具有耐药性，也使肿瘤对 TKI 具有耐药性。