Systematic Reviews
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2024. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Stem Cells. May 26, 2024; 16(5): 604-614
Published online May 26, 2024. doi: 10.4252/wjsc.v16.i5.604
Role of glioma stem cells in promoting tumor chemo- and radioresistance: A systematic review of potential targeted treatments
Edoardo Agosti, Marco Zeppieri, Mattia Ghidoni, Tamara Ius, Alessandro Tel, Marco Maria Fontanella, Pier Paolo Panciani
Edoardo Agosti, Mattia Ghidoni, Marco Maria Fontanella, Pier Paolo Panciani, Division of Neurosurgery, Department of Medical and Surgical Specialties, Radiological Sciences and Public Health, University of Brescia, Brescia 25123, Italy
Marco Zeppieri, Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital of Udine, Udine 33100, Italy
Tamara Ius, Neurosurgery Unit, Department of Head-Neck and NeuroScience, University Hospital of Udine, Udine 33100, Italy
Alessandro Tel, Clinic of Maxillofacial Surgery, Department of Head-Neck and NeuroScience, University Hospital of Udine, Udine 33100, Italy
Author contributions: Agosti E did the research and wrote the paper; Zeppieri M assisted in the conception and design of the study, writing, outline, and completed the English and scientific editing (a native English-speaking MD, Ph.D); Ghidoni M, Ius T, Tel A, Fontanella MM, and Panciani PP assisted in the outline of the draft, writing of the paper, research, editing of the paper; and all authors provided the final approval of the version of the article.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
PRISMA 2009 Checklist statement: The authors have read the PRISMA 2009 Checklist, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the PRISMA 2009 Checklist.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Marco Zeppieri, MD, PhD, Doctor, Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital of Udine, p.le S. Maria della Misericordia 15, Udine 33100, Italy. mark.zeppieri@asufc.sanita.fvg.it
Received: December 23, 2023
Revised: March 6, 2024
Accepted: April 19, 2024
Published online: May 26, 2024
Processing time: 152 Days and 15.5 Hours
Core Tip

Core Tip: The challenge of treating gliomas persists despite advancements in chemotherapy and radiotherapy, with glioma stem cells (GSCs) contributing to resistance and tumor heterogeneity. This systematic literature review, covering 66 studies, underscores the intricate role of GSCs in therapeutic resistance, particularly highlighting their involvement in DNA repair mechanisms and dynamic cellular state transitions. Targeted therapies face challenges due to GSCs’ high plasticity, and the review emphasizes the need for precision treatments that account for GSC population heterogeneity and the tumor microenvironment’s dynamic nature. Versatile therapeutic agents, including RNA inhibitor/short hairpin RNA, inhibitors (e.g., LY294002, NVP-BEZ235), and monoclonal antibodies (e.g., cetuximab), demonstrate efficacy in overcoming GSC-mediated resistance. Notably, the most common effect on the chemo- and radiotherapy response is a reduction in temozolomide resistance, highlighting the potential for improved outcomes by disrupting GSC-mediated resistance mechanisms in glioblastoma patients.