ABCG1 and Pgp identify drug resistant, self-renewing osteosarcoma cells

Patients with osteosarcoma (OST) frequently relapse with drug resistant disease, consistent with the hypothesis that tumours contain a cancer stem-like cell (CSCs) population that survives chemotherapy to re-populate the tumour at local or metastatic sites. We describe a dual functional approach to isolate OST-CSCs and identify the ABC transporter proteins driving this population to reveal potential targets for the development of new treatments.

OST-CSCs were isolated by selection in doxorubicin (OST-EC50 cells) and based on the ability to produce progeny from a single cell (HOS-EC50.SR cells). Pgp expression was increased in OST-EC50 cells, inducing resistance to doxorubicin, etoposide, vincristine and actinomycin D (p < 0.05). Increased expression of ABCG1 and Pgp protein in the HOS-EC50.SR cells induced resistance to etoposide and doxorubicin (p < 0.01), which was directly correlated with ABCG1 expression (r > 0.88, p < 0.001).

Pgp expression is increased in both the HOS-EC50 cells where it mediates MDR and the HOS-EC50.SR populations, whereas ABCG1 was only upregulated in the self-renewing drug resistant HOS-EC50.SR cells. Targeting ABCG1 and Pgp may eradicate the drug resistant self-renewing OST-CSCs, leading to improved outcomes for patients with OST.