Researchers publish new insights into how glioblastoma invades and grows

Glioblastoma, also known as glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), is the most aggressive type of cancer that starts in the brain

Now, a team from the Centre for Excellence in Brain Tumor Research at Queen Mary University of London has discovered new insights into how GBM has developed and identified potential new targets for personalized treatment

Their findings were published in the journal Nature Communications, entitled "Comparative Epigenetic Analysis of Tumor-Initiating Cells and Neural Stem Cells Derived from Syngeneic Epsc (SYNGN) in Malignant Glioma"

The researchers wrote: "Epigenetic mechanisms play an important role in normal development, such as neural stem cell self-renewal and fate regulation (NSC), and are also responsible for some changes in the GBM genome

Researchers have developed a method to generate syngeneic neural stem cells and use it as a comparator of patient-specific glioma starter cells to discover the pathogenesis-related mechanisms of glioblastoma and determine the patient’s risk Drug targets

Silvia Marino, MD, professor of neuropathology, explained: “We have used this powerful technology to identify changes in gene function in GBM that do not lead to changes in the genetic code (epigenetics)

Researchers have found significant molecular differences that can be used to develop new treatments

Hugh Adams, a spokesperson for the Brain Tumor Institute, said: "The complexity of this particular tumor type means that the standard of treatment for these patients has not changed in a generation, so this research brings urgent needs for the future.

"There is strong evidence that GBM cells are derived from neural stem cells, but previous studies have failed to compare tumor cells with cells presumed to come from the same person

The researchers concluded: "Our method has identified functionally-related epigenetic modifications of target genes.