As part of their demonstration that MYC and the Bcl-2 family protein MCL1 induce OXPHOS-dependent TIC-ness, Lee et al. [33] found that the ALDH+/CD44+/mammosphere TIC fraction of triple-negative breast cancer cells showed increased mitochondrial membrane potential and respiratory capacity, and conversely, that cells with these properties formed mammospheres in an oligomycin-dependent manner. This evidence concerns the gene CD44 and triple-negative breast carcinoma.