Organ发育和稳态涉及个体细胞之间的动态相互作用，共同调节组织结构和功能。为确保最高的组织保真度，同样适合的细胞群体通过随机替换事件不断更新，而被认为不适合的细胞则被其更适合的对手主动排斥。这种更新是由被称为细胞竞争的监控机制调节的。最近的研究表明，细胞竞争在大多数发育和成体组织中都有作用。它还确定了细胞竞争既是肿瘤抑制机制也是肿瘤促进机制，从而对癌症的启动和发展起着至关重要的作用。本文讨论了细胞竞争机制及其在胚胎发育、稳态和癌症中的不同作用的最新见解。 ©2022 Springer Nature Limited。

Organ development and homeostasis involve dynamic interactions between individual cells that collectively regulate tissue architecture and function. To ensure the highest tissue fidelity, equally fit cell populations are continuously renewed by stochastic replacement events, while cells perceived as less fit are actively removed by their fitter counterparts. This renewal is mediated by surveillance mechanisms that are collectively known as cell competition. Recent studies have revealed that cell competition has roles in most, if not all, developing and adult tissues. They have also established that cell competition functions both as a tumour-suppressive mechanism and as a tumour-promoting mechanism, thereby critically influencing cancer initiation and development. This Review discusses the latest insights into the mechanisms of cell competition and its different roles during embryonic development, homeostasis and cancer.© 2022. Springer Nature Limited.