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. 2017 Nov 8;18(11):2362. doi: 10.3390/ijms18112362

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© 2017 by the authors.

Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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Potential signalling molecules released by ATP binding cassette (ABC) transporters in cancer stem cells. CSCs have an enhanced expression of ABC transporters, coupled with an increased mitochondrial ATP output. ABC transporters primarily use energy derived from ATP to carry out their functions. In addition to exporting a wide variety of drugs, contributing to the multidrug resistant phenotype, ABC transporters can export a variety of signalling molecules that may contribute to an overall enhanced survival advantage. For example, ABCC4 can export prostaglandins (PGs), whereas ABCC1 can export leukotriene C4 (LTC₄), sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) and lysophosphatidylinositol (LPI). It was recently found that ABCB5 can export interleukin 1 beta (IL1β) and ABCG2 can export androgens. Members of the ABCA family export phospholipids and have been implicated in intracellular lipid homeostasis. Additionally a variety of ABC transporters can export glutathione (GSH) and conjugates.