| Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most lethal and hard‐to‐treat cancers in the
world, which in its advanced stages, surgery and chemotherapy are the main common
treatment approaches. The microRNAs (miRNAs), as novel markers for CRC
detection, promote their regulatory effects via the 3′‐untranslated binding region
(3′‐UTR) of target messenger RNA in posttranscriptional regulation of genes and also
play a pivotal role in modulating resistance to chemotherapeutic agents. These small
noncoding RNAs have also a critical role in CRC stem cells (CRCSCs) regulation,
comprising self‐renewal, differentiation, and tumorigenesis. Cancer stem cells (CSCs)
are distinctive cell types inside a tumor tissue that are believed to derive from normal
somatic stem cells. The CSCs have self‐renewal abilities, angiogenesis, as well as
specific surface markers expression characteristics. Furthermore, they are frequently
criticized for tumor maintenance, treatment resistance, tumor development, and
distant metastasis. In this review, we discuss the current understandings of CRCSCs
and their environment with a focus on the role of miRNAs on the regulation of CSCs
and their targeting application in CRC treatment. |