Brain Tumor Research and Treatment  2013;1(1):9-15

doi:10.14791/btrt.2013.1.1.9

Molecular Culprits Generating Brain Tumor Stem Cells.

Se Yeong OH 1 ; Hyunggee KIM

Affiliations

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Keywords

High-grade glioma; Brain tumor stem cell; Cancer stem cell niche; Brain tumor stem cell reprogramming; Reprogramming factors

Country

Republic of Korea

Language

English

Abstract

Despite current advances in multimodality therapies, such as surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy, the outcome for patients with high-grade glioma remains fatal. Understanding how glioma cells resist various therapies may provide opportunities for developing new therapies. Accumulating evidence suggests that the main obstacle for successfully treating high-grade glioma is the existence of brain tumor stem cells (BTSCs), which share a number of cellular properties with adult stem cells, such as self-renewal and multipotent differentiation capabilities. Owing to their resistance to standard therapy coupled with their infiltrative nature, BTSCs are a primary cause of tumor recurrence post-therapy. Therefore, BTSCs are thought to be the main glioma cells representing a novel therapeutic target and should be eliminated to obtain successful treatment outcomes.