Integrated analysis of miRNA, gene, and pathway regulatory networks in hepatic cancer stem cells

Background Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignancies worldwide. HCC has a poor prognosis associated with tumor recurrence and drug resistance, which has been attributed to the existence of hepatic cancer stem cells (HCSCs). However, the characteristics and regulatory mechanisms of HCSCs remain unclear. We therefore established a novel system to enrich HCSCs and we demonstrate that these HCSCs exhibit cancer stem cell properties.