Prom1, also known as Prominin-1 or CD133, is a penta-span transmembrane protein. It is expressed in cancer stem cells and various progenitor cells in organs like the bone marrow, liver, kidney, and intestine. In the liver, it is involved in multiple functions such as regulating PKA-induced gluconeogenesis, TGFβ-induced fibrosis, and IL-6-induced regeneration, associating with Radixin, SMAD7, and GP130 respectively. It also maintains cancer stem cell properties by activating PI3K and β-Catenin [2].

In liver cancer, lineage tracing in Prom1C-L/+; Rosa26tdTomato/+ mice and targeted depletion in Prom1C-L/+; Rosa26DTA/+ mice were carried out. The results showed that Prom1 in HCC tumours marks proliferative tumour-propagating cells with CSC-like properties. Depletion of Prom1+ cells impeded tumour growth and reduced malignant cancer hallmarks in two HCC mouse models. Single-cell RNA sequencing further highlighted the heterogeneity of Prom1+ HCC cells, which follow a trajectory to a dedifferentiated status with high proliferation and stem cell traits [1].

In conclusion, Prom1 is crucial in maintaining cell functions in multiple organs and is significantly involved in cancer, especially liver cancer. The use of mouse models, such as gene-targeted KO models, has provided valuable insights into its role in cancer progression, revealing its potential as a therapeutic target in liver cancer treatment.

References:

1. Zhou, Lei, Yu, Ken Ho, Wong, Tin Lok, Ho, Joshua Wk, Ma, Stephanie. 2021. Lineage tracing and single-cell analysis reveal proliferative Prom1+ tumour-propagating cells and their dynamic cellular transition during liver cancer progression. In Gut, 71, 1656-1668. doi:10.1136/gutjnl-2021-324321. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34588223/

2. Bahn, Myeong-Suk, Ko, Young-Gyu. . PROM1-mediated cell signal transduction in cancer stem cells and hepatocytes. In BMB reports, 56, 65-70. doi:. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36617467/