Int. J. Dev. Biol. 57: 185 - 195 (2013)

https://doi.org/10.1387/ijdb.130068ja

Vol 57, Issue 2-3-4

Special Issue: Male Germ Cells in Development & Tumors

The spermatogonial stem cell niche in testicular germ cell tumors

Open Access | Published: 30 May 2013

Unai Silván^1,#, Alejandro Díez-Torre², Pablo Moreno¹, Jon Arluzea^1,2, Ricardo Andrade², Margarita Silió¹ and Juan Aréchaga*^,1,2

¹Laboratory of Stem Cells, Development and Cancer, Department of Cell Biology and Histology and ²Analytical and High Resolution Biomedical Microscopy Core Facility, University of the Basque Country, Vizcaya, Spain

Abstract

Spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) are pluripotent elements found in the adult seminiferous epithelium between Sertoli cells and a basal lamina which covers the multilayered external wall of peritubular myoid cells. The microenvironment of this pluripotent stem cell niche creates the complex and dynamic system that is necessary for the initiation of spermatogenesis, but this system also contains factors which can potentially collaborate in the progression of testicular germ cell tumors (TGCTs). In this review, we summarize our current knowledge about some important structural and molecular features related to the SSC niche, including growth factors, adhesion molecules, extracellular matrix, mechanical stress and vascularization. We discuss their possible collaborative effects on the generation and progression of TGCTs, which are a type of cancer representing the most frequent neoplasia among young men and whose incidence has grown very quickly during the past decades in North America and Europe. In this regard, a better understanding of the pluripotent stem cell niche where these malignancies arise will provide further insights into the origin of TGCTs and the mechanisms underlying their growth and invasion of adjacent and distant tissues.

Keywords

testis, spermatogonia, germ cell tumor, embryonal carcinoma, teratocarcinoma, cancer stem cell