Animal Models Of Glioblastoma Research Articles

Thymidine kinase gene delivery using curcumin loaded peptide micelles as a combination therapy for glioblastoma.

The effect of the combination therapy of curcumin and the herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase (HSVtk) gene using R7L10 as a carrier was evaluated in a glioblastoma animal model. Curcumin was loaded into the cores of R7L10 peptide micelles using an oil-in-water emulsion/solvent evaporation method to generate curcumin loaded R7L10 micelles (R7L10-Cur), which were used as a carrier to deliver the HSVtk gene. The plasmid DNA (pDNA)/R7L10-Cur complex was confirmed by gel retardation, heparin competition, and dynamic light scattering analyses. Transfection efficiency and cytotoxicity were measured using luciferase, MTT, and TUNEL assays. Intracellular delivery of curcumin was determined by fluorescence and absorbance. In the glioblastoma animal model, the effects of the intratumoral delivery of curcumin and the HSVtk gene were evaluated according to tumor size, immunohistochemistry, and TUNEL assays. R7L10-Cur delivered pDNA into the cells more efficiently than PLL and R7L10. In addition, R7L10-Cur delivered curcumin into the cells more efficiently than curcumin alone. The pHSVtk/R7L10-Cur complex induced cell death efficiently both in vitro and in vivo. Likewise, the combination of curcumin and the HSVtk gene using the pHSVtk/R7L10-Cur complex reduced tumor size more efficiently than the pHSVtk/PEI and pHSVtk/R7L10 complexes in a glioblastoma animal model. R7L10 is an efficient carrier for delivery of curcumin and the HSVtk gene, which may be a useful combination therapy for glioblastoma.

In vivo and ex vivo assessment of the blood brain barrier integrity in different glioblastoma animal models.

Blood brain barrier (BBB) disruption is used (pre)clinically as a measure for brain tumor malignancy and grading. During treatment it is one of the parameters followed rigorously to assess therapeutic efficacy. In animal models, both invasive and non-invasive methods are used to determine BBB disruption, among them Evans blue injection prior to sacrifice and T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) post contrast injection. In this study, we have assessed the BBB integrity with the methods mentioned above in two experimental high grade glioma models, namely the GL261 mouse glioblastoma model and the Hs683 human oligodendroglioma model. The GL261 model showed clear BBB integrity loss with both, contrast-enhanced (CE) MRI and Evans blue staining. In contrast, the Hs683 model only displayed BBB disruption with CE-MRI, which was not evident on Evans blue staining, indicating a limited BBB disruption. These results clearly indicate the importance of assessing the BBB integrity status using appropriate methods. Especially when using large therapeutic molecules that have difficulties crossing the BBB, care should be taken with the appropriate BBB disruption assessment studies.

ABERRANT SPLICING OF A BRAIN-ENRICHED ALTERNATIVE EXON ELIMINATES TUMOR SUPPRESSOR FUNCTION AND PROMOTES ONCOGENE FUNCTION DURING BRAIN TUMORIGENESIS

BACKGROUND: Tissue-specific alternative splicing is known to be critical to emergence of tissue identity during development, yet its role in malignant transformation is undefined. Tissue-specific splicing involves evolutionary-conserved, alternative exons, which represent only a minority of total alternative exons. Many, however, have functional features that influence activity in signaling pathways to profound biological effect. Given that tissue-specific splicing has a determinative role in brain development and the enrichment of genes containing tissue-specific exons for proteins with roles in signaling and development, it is thus plausible that changes in such exons could rewire normal neurogenesis towards malignant transformation. METHODS: We used integrated molecular genetic and cell biology analyses, computational biology, animal modeling, and clinical patient profiles to characterize the effect of aberrant splicing of a brain-enriched alternative exon in the membrane-binding tumor suppressor Annexin A7 (ANXA7) on oncogene regulation and brain tumorigenesis. RESULTS: We show that aberrant splicing of a tissue-specific cassette exon in ANXA7 diminishes endosomal targeting and consequent termination of the signal of the EGFR oncoprotein during brain tumorigenesis. Splicing of this exon is mediated by the ribonucleoprotein Polypyrimidine Tract-Binding Protein 1 (PTBP1), which is normally repressed during brain development but, we find, is excessively expressed in glioblastomas through either gene amplification or loss of a neuron-specific microRNA, miR-124. Silencing of PTBP1 attenuates both malignancy and angiogenesis in a stem cell-derived glioblastoma animal model characterized by a high native propensity to generate tumor endothelium or vascular pericytes to support tumor growth. We show that EGFR amplification and PTBP1 overexpression portend a similarly poor clinical outcome, further highlighting the importance of PTBP1-mediated activation of EGFR. CONCLUSIONS: Our data illustrate how anomalous splicing of a tissue-regulated exon in a constituent of an oncogenic signaling pathway eliminates its tumor suppressor function and promotes tumorigenesis. This paradigm of malignant glial transformation as a consequence of tissue-specific alternative exon splicing in a tumor suppressor, may have widespread applicability in explaining how changes in critical tissue-specific regulatory mechanisms reprogram normal development to oncogenesis. SECONDARY CATEGORY: n/a.

Lipopeptide‐modified PEG‐PE‐based pharmaceutical nanocarriers for enhanced uptake in blood–brain barrier cells and improved cytotoxicity against glioma cells

Surface modification of nanoparticles is a promising approach for enhancing the delivery of drugs into the brain and cancer cells. Recently cationic lipopeptide micelles showed selective uptake into endothelial cells of brain microvessels. Here, we show that lipopeptides are promising tools to deliver an anticancer drug incorporated into PEGylated lipid (PEG‐PE) micelles to brain endothelial cells and into glioblastoma cells. PEG‐PE micelles containing PCL were stably modified with different arginine (R‐) and lysine (K)‐rich lipopeptides. The size and surface charge of the micelles did not change after modification with lipopeptides. Flow cytometry (FACS) and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) revealed pronounced interaction of lipopeptide‐modified micelles with brain endothelial cells. Furthermore, the co‐localisation of both the fluorescent lipopeptides and a marker lipid of micelles within human glioblastoma cells (U87MG) confirmed the integrity of the carrier after internalisation. FACS studies showed that the arginine‐rich lipopeptide caused most efficient uptake into the cancer cells. The pronounced uptake correlated with higher a cytotoxic effect of PCL incorporated into peptide‐tagged micelles compared to the unmodified carriers. As a conclusion, arginine‐rich lipopeptides known to enhance the uptake of different NP into blood–brain barrier endothelial cells seem to be also encouraging candidates for targeting brain‐located tumors.Practical applications: The surface modification of existing carrier systems with lipopeptides to improve their applicability has been proven by this work. Furthermore, the findings in this study are the basis for further improvement of lipopeptide modified PEG‐PE micelles and their possible in vivo application in animal models of glioblastoma. The incorporation of anti‐cancer drugs as well as diagnostic agents and their delivery to and beyond the BBB can be a tool for a broad number of further investigations.Lipopeptide (P2Rn)‐modified PEG‐PE micelles show enhanced uptake into human glioma cells (nuclei stained cyan). This improved uptake correlates with higher cytotoxicity of incorporated anti‐cancer drug paclitaxel (PCL).

Validation of an imageable surgical resection animal model of Glioblastoma (GBM).

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common and malignant primary brain tumour having a median survival of just 12-18 months following standard therapy protocols. Local recurrence, post-resection and adjuvant therapy occurs in most cases. U87MG-luc2-bearing GBM xenografts underwent 4.5mm craniectomy and tumour resection using microsurgical techniques. The cranial defect was repaired using a novel modified cranial window technique consisting of a circular microscope coverslip held in place with glue. Immediate post-operative bioluminescence imaging (BLI) revealed a gross total resection rate of 75%. At censor point 4 weeks post-resection, Kaplan-Meier survival analysis revealed 100% survival in the surgical group compared to 0% in the non-surgical cohort (p=0.01). No neurological defects or infections in the surgical group were observed. GBM recurrence was reliably imaged using facile non-invasive optical bioluminescence (BLI) imaging with recurrence observed at week 4. For the first time, we have used a novel cranial defect repair method to extend and improve intracranial surgical resection methods for application in translational GBM rodent disease models. Combining BLI and the cranial window technique described herein facilitates non-invasive serial imaging follow-up. Within the current context we have developed a robust methodology for establishing a clinically relevant imageable GBM surgical resection model that appropriately mimics GBM recurrence post resection in patients.

Label-free microscopic assessment of glioblastoma biopsy specimens prior to biobanking

Glioblastoma is the most common primary brain tumor with a median 12- to 15-month patient survival. Improving patient survival involves better understanding the biological mechanisms of glioblastoma tumorigenesis and seeking targeted molecular therapies. Central to furthering these advances is the collection and storage of surgical biopsies (biobanking) for research. This paper addresses an imaging modality, confocal reflectance microscopy (CRM), for safely screening glioblastoma biopsy samples prior to biobanking to increase the quality of tissue provided for research and clinical trials. These data indicate that CRM can immediately identify cellularity of tissue biopsies from animal models of glioblastoma. When screening fresh human biopsy samples, CRM can differentiate a cellular glioblastoma biopsy from a necrotic biopsy without altering DNA, RNA, or protein expression of sampled tissue. These data illustrate CRM's potential for rapidly and safely screening clinical biopsy samples prior to biobanking, which demonstrates its potential as an effective screening technique that can improve the quality of tissue biobanked for patients with glioblastoma.

Effects of Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors and CXCR4 Antagonist on Tumor Growth and Angiogenesis in Rat Glioma Model: MRI and Protein Analysis Study

The aim of the study was to determine the antiangiogenic efficacy of vatalanib, sunitinib, and AMD3100 in an animal model of human glioblastoma (GBM) by using dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI) and tumor protein expression analysis. Orthotopic GBM-bearing animals were randomly assigned either to control group or vatalanib, sunitinib, and AMD3100 treatment groups. Following 2 weeks of drug treatment, tumor growth and vascular parameters were measured using DCE-MRI. Expression of different angiogenic factors in tumor extracts was measured using a membrane-based human antibody array kit. Tumor angiogenesis and invasion were determined by immunohistochemistry. DCE-MRI showed a significant increase in tumor size after vatalanib treatment. AMD3100-treated group showed a significant decrease in a number of vascular parameters determined by DCE-MRI. AMD3100 significantly decreased the expression of different angiogenic factors compared to sunitinib or vatalanib; however, there were no significant changes in vascular density among the groups. Sunitinib-treated animals showed significantly higher migration of the invasive cells, whereas in both vatalanib- and AMD3100-treated animals the invasive cell migration distance was significantly lower compared to that of control. Vatalanib and sunitinib resulted in suboptimal therapeutic effect, but AMD3100 treatment resulted in a significant reduction in tumor growth, permeability, interstitial space volume, and invasion of tumor cells in an animal model of GBM.

MicroRNA-100 Targets SMRT/NCOR2, Reduces Proliferation, and Improves Survival in Glioblastoma Animal Models

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most frequently diagnosed malignant human glioma, and current median patient survival is less than two years despite maximal surgery followed by temozolomide chemoradiation therapies. Novel microRNA-related therapies are now being developed for cancers such as GBM. Differential microRNA expression profiling revealed that miR-100 expression is down-regulated in GBM compared to normal controls. We report that miR-100 expression reduces GBM tumorigenicity. In vitro, four GBM lines (U87, U251, 22T, and 33T) demonstrated reduced proliferation 24 hours after transient miR100 overexpression via transfection. miR-100 triggered cell death an average 70% more than scrambled miR controls 24 hours after transient transfection (p < 0.01). miR-100 targeted inhibition of the “silencing mediator of retinoid or thyroid hormone receptor-2” (SMRT/NCOR2) gene was confirmed via reporter assays. Ki67 proliferation index was decreased 40% in tumor xenografts generated from stable miR-100 transfected GBM lines versus controls (p < 0.01). Furthermore, treatment of tumor xenografts with a single pre-mir-100 injection (60 pmol) significantly extended survival of mice bearing intracranial GBM xenografts 25% more than scrambled controls (p < 0.01; n=8). These studies establish miR-100’s effect on tumor GBM growth, and suggest clinical potential for microRNA-related GBM therapy.

Targeting glioblastoma with NK cells and mAb against NG2/CSPG4 prolongs animal survival

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most malignant brain tumor where patients' survival is only 14.6 months, despite multimodal therapy with debulking surgery, concurrent chemotherapy and radiotherapy. There is an urgent, unmet need for novel, effective therapeutic strategies for this devastating disease. Although several immunotherapies are under development for the treatment of GBM patients, the use of natural killer (NK) cells is still marginal despite this being a promising approach to treat cancer. In regard of our knowledge on the role of NG2/CSPG4 in promoting GBM aggressiveness we investigated the potential of an innovative immunotherapeutic strategy combining mAb9.2.27 against NG2/CSPG4 and NK cells in preclinical animal models of GBM. Multiple immune escape mechanisms maintain the tumor microenvironment in an anti-inflammatory state to promote tumor growth, however, the distinct roles of resident microglia versus recruited macrophages is not elucidated. We hypothesized that exploiting the cytokine release capabilities of activated (NK) cells to reverse the anti-inflammatory axis combined with mAb9.2.27 targeting the NG2/CSPG4 may favor tumor destruction by editing pro-GBM immune responses. Combination treatment with NK+mAb9.2.27 diminished tumor growth that was associated with reduced tumor proliferation, increased cellular apoptosis and prolonged survival compared to vehicle and monotherapy controls. The therapeutic efficacy was mediated by recruitment of CCR2low macrophages into the tumor microenvironment, increased ED1 and MHC class II expression on microglia that might render them competent for GBM antigen presentation, as well as elevated IFN-γ and TNF-α levels in the cerebrospinal fluid compared to controls. Depletion of systemic macrophages by liposome-encapsulated clodronate decreased the CCR2low macrophages recruited to the brain and abolished the beneficial outcomes. Moreover, mAb9.2.27 reversed tumor-promoting effects of patient-derived tumor-associated macrophage/microglia(TAM) ex vivo.Taken together, these findings indicate thatNK+mAb9.2.27 treatment may be an amenable therapeutic strategy to treat NG2/CSPG4 expressing GBMs. We provide a novel conceptual approach of combination immunotherapy for glioblastoma. The results traverse beyond the elucidation of NG2/CSPG4 as a therapeutic target, but demonstrate a proof of concept that this antibody may hold potential for the treatment of GBM by activation of tumor infiltrated microglia/macrophages.

Abstract 2183: PF-02341066 (crizotinib), a dual ALK/c-Met inhibitor, for inhibiting growth of glioblastoma.

Abstract Glioblastoma is the most common and highly aggressive human brain cancer. Most of the glioblastoma patients do not survive more than a few months after the diagnosis. The prognosis for glioblastoma patients remains very poor even after aggressive treatments. Traditional therapeutic strategies are not yet satisfactory for controlling the growth of this deadly malignancy in humans. Heterogeneity of cells in glioblastoma is one of biggest hurdles in its management. Novel and innovative therapeutic agents need to be explored for targeting the key cell signaling pathways that promote proliferation and survival of different human glioblastoma cells. Receptor tyrosine kinases have been implicated in the progression of this malignancy. Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) and c-Met are two such proteins. ALK/c-Met are associated with the development and progression of many human cancers, including glioblastoma. Also, overexpression or mutation of c-ros proto-oncogene encodes a receptor tyrosine kinase, which also leads to oncogenic development of glioblastoma. In the present study, we examined the activity of the Pfizer drug crizotinib (PF-02341066, a dual ALK/c-Met inhibitor) for suppression of both ALK/c-Met pathways and induction of apoptotic death in different human glioblastoma cell lines (U87MG, T98G, U118MG, and U138MG) and fresh tumor biopsies surgically extracted from 6 glioblastoma patients. Our dose-response studies indicated that treatment with PF-02341066 for 24 h could induce morphological features (as detected by Wright staining) and also biochemical features (as detected by DNA fragmentation assay and Western blotting) of apoptosis. We used Western blotting for investigation into the molecular mechanisms of apoptotic death and found that induction of apoptosis was associated with decreases in expression of ALK, c-Met, c-Ros, Survivin, and Bcl-2 proteins after the treatment. Western blotting also demonstrated that treatment with PF-02341066 caused apoptosis due to an increase in Bax:Bcl-2 ratio and activation of caspase-3 in glionlastoma cells and tissues. Increase in activity of caspase-3 was confirmed by colorimetric assay. Most importantly, PF-02341066 significantly enhanced the anti-cancer effect of temozolomide (TMZ), a widely used anti-glioblastoma drug, in human glioblastoma cell lines (U87MG, T98G, U118MG, and U138MG) as well as in fresh tumor biopsies from 6 glioblastoma patients. Our studies also suggested that induction of apoptosis by PF-02341066 does not depend on the functional status of p53, PTEN, ALK, c-Met, or c-Ros in the glioblastoma cell lines or in the glioblastoma tissues. Further studies in different animal models of glioblastoma are warranted in the future to determine whether PF-02341066 may be useful as an anti-cancer agent alone or in combination with TMZ for the management of human glioblastomas in vivo. This investigation was supported in by Pfizer Oncology. Citation Format: Arabinda Das, Gerald C. Wallace, Catherine Haar, Michele L. DeCandio, W Alex Vandergrift, Sunil J. Patel, Swapan K. Ray, Naren L. Banik, Pierre Giglio. PF-02341066 (crizotinib), a dual ALK/c-Met inhibitor, for inhibiting growth of glioblastoma. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 104th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2013 Apr 6-10; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 2183. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2013-2183

Glioblastoma, a Brief Review of History, Molecular Genetics, Animal Models and Novel Therapeutic Strategies

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common and lethal primary brain tumor. Over the past few years tremendous genomic and proteomic characterization along with robust animal models of GBM have provided invaluable data that show that "GBM", although histologically indistinguishable from one another, are comprised of molecularly heterogenous diseases. In addition, robust pre-clinical models and a better understanding of the core pathways disrupted in GBM are providing a renewed optimism for novel strategies targeting these devastating tumors. Here, we summarize a brief history of the disease, our current molecular knowledge, lessons from animal models and emerging concepts of angiogenesis, invasion, and metabolism in GBM that may lend themselves to therapeutic targeting.

Sorafenib enhances pemetrexed cytotoxicity through an autophagy-dependent mechanism in cancer cells.

Pemetrexed (ALIMTA, Lilly) is a folate antimetabolite that has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer and has been shown to stimulate autophagy. In the present study, we sought to further understand the role of autophagy in response to pemetrexed and to test if combination therapy could enhance the level of toxicity through altered autophagy in tumor cells. The multikinase inhibitor sorafenib (Nexavar, Bayer), used in the treatment of renal and hepatocellular carcinoma, suppresses tumor angiogenesis and promotes autophagy in tumor cells. We found that sorafenib interacted in a greater than additive fashion with pemetrexed to increase autophagy and to kill a diverse array of tumor cell types. Tumor cell types that displayed high levels of cell killing after combination treatment showed elevated levels of AKT, p70 S6K, and/or phosphorylated mTOR, in addition to class III receptor tyrosine kinases such as platelet-derived growth factor receptor beta and VEGF receptors, known in vivo targets of sorafenib. In xenograft and in syngeneic animal models of mammary carcinoma and glioblastoma, the combination of sorafenib and pemetrexed suppressed tumor growth without deleterious effects on normal tissues or animal body mass. Taken together, the data suggest that premexetred and sorafenib act synergistically to enhance tumor killing via the promotion of a toxic form of autophagy that leads to activation of the intrinsic apoptosis pathway, and predict that combination treatment represents a future therapeutic option in the treatment of solid tumors.

Abstract 3625: Exogenous short-term activation of c-Met and EGFR sensitizes them to kinase inhibitors

Abstract Activation of the c-Met and EGFR receptor tyrosine kinases induces brain tumor malignancy and is associated with poor clinical outcome of brain tumor patients. Consequently, c-Met and EGFR are promising targets for the therapy of brain tumors and clinically applicable inhibitors of these receptors have been developed by biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. We tested the effects of a specific and potent c-Met kinase inhibitor (PF-2341066) on glioma cells and glioma stem cells. Surprisingly, we found that the inhibitor induced significantly greater cell death when c-Met was shortly pre-activated with its ligand hepatocyte growth factor (HGF). Glioblastoma cells (U87, U373), primary glioblastoma cells (GBM10) and glioblastoma stem cells (1228, 0308) were pre-treated with 20 ng/ml HGF for 2h, 4h, 6h, 8h, 16h or 24h prior to treatment with PF-2341066 (100 nM for established and primary cells and 300 nM for cancer stem cells) for 24 hr. The cells were subsequently assessed for apoptosis using annexin-V flow cytometry. The results showed that the inhibitor induced significantly greater (34-79%) absolute cell death in pre-activated cells than in non-activated cells. The optimal time of pre-activation that achieved greatest sensitization of the receptor to kinase inhibitor-induced cell death was 2-4 hours. Using a similar experimental approach, we also tested the effects of EGFR pre-activation on EGFR inhibitor erlotinib-induced cell death in glioma cells. Glioma cells were pre-treated with EGF (100ng/ml) for 3h, 6h, 16h or 24h prior to treatment with erlotinib (2.5 µM) for 24 hrs and assessment of cell death by annexin V flow cytometry. EGFR pre-activation led to significantly greater (138 %) erlotinib-induced cell death than without pre-activation. Based on the above findings, we hypothesize that short-term exogenous activation of c-Met, EGFR and possibly also other receptor tyrosine kinases can trigger fast oncogene addiction that sensitizes tumor cells to death induced by receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors. We are currently testing this hypothesis using in vivo glioblastoma animal models. Verification of this new hypothesis would imply that quick short-term activation of tyrosine kinase receptors by bolus delivery of receptor tyrosine kinase ligands would sensitize tumors to kinase inhibitors and therefore improve the efficacy of these inhibitors in cancer therapy. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 3625.

Oral paclitaxel chemotherapy for brain tumors: Ideal combination treatment of paclitaxel and P-glycoprotein inhibitor

Oral chemotherapy has many advantages over parenteral chemotherapeutics administration. To use the advantages of the oral chemotherapy and maximize anti-tumor effects of the chemotherapeutic agent, we designed HM30181A (a P-glycoprotein inhibitor) and a paclitaxel oral co-administration chemotherapeutic method. HM30181A is used to aid paclitaxel absorption from gut lumen into blood and to inhibit paclitaxel exclusion out of the brain tumor mass by endothelial cells, which inhibits paclitaxel access to tumor cells in the brain parenchyma. We applied HM30181A and paclitaxel oral co-administration methods to the treatment of tumors in the brain using the K1735 melanoma brain metastasis animal model and the U-87 MG glioblastoma animal model. Administrations were performed twice per week for 28 days and the therapeutic effect was examined using tumor volume change. We observed that 32 mg/kg HM30181A and 16 mg/kg of paclitaxel (dose ratio 2:1) oral co-administration showed significant therapeutic effects in both animal models, but when the doses or dose ratio was changed, the effects could not be observed. Therefore, adjustments of doses and dose ratio of the agents seems to be essential in realizing oral HM30181A and paclitaxel treatment in brain tumors. These results suggest that if the doses and dose ratio can be successfully adjusted, the oral co-administration of HM30181A and paclitaxel can be used to treat tumors in the brain.

Intracranial Stereotaxic Cannulation for Development of Orthotopic Glioblastoma Allograft in Sprague-Dawley Rats and Histoimmunopathological Characterization of the Brain Tumor

Glioblastoma is the most common brain tumor that causes significant mortality annually. Limitations of the current therapeutic regimens warrant development of new techniques and treatment strategies in orthotopic animal model for better management of this devastating brain cancer. There are only a few experimental orthotopic models of glioblastoma for pre-clinical testing. In the present investigation, we successfully implanted rat C6 cells via intracranial stereotaxic cannulation in adult Sprague-Dawley rats for development and histoimmunopathological characterization of an advanced orthotopic glioblastoma allograft model, which could be useful for investigating the course of glioblastoma development as well as for testing efficacy of new therapeutic agents. The orthotopic glioblastoma allograft was generated by intracerebral injection of rat C6 cells through a guide-cannula system and after 21 post-inoculation days the brain tumor was characterized by histoimmunopathological experiments. Histological staining and immunofluorescent labelings for TERT, VEGF, Bcl-2, survivin, XIAP, and GFAP revealed the distinct characteristics of glioblastoma in C6 allograft, which could be useful as a target for treatment with emerging new therapeutic agents. Our investigation indicated the successful development of intracranial cannulated orthotopic glioblastoma allograft in adult Sprague-Dawley rats, making it as a useful animal model of glioblastoma for pre-clinical evaluation of various therapeutic strategies for the management of glioblastoma.

The role of protein kinase C-α in malignancies of the nervous system and implications for the clinical development of the specific PKC-α inhibitor aprinocarsen (Review)

Antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) technology offers a novel approach for the development of anti-cancer drugs. For example, the ASO aprinocarsen has been developed to specifically inhibit the intracellular signal transduction protein, protein kinase C-alpha (PKC-alpha). The clinical development of such specific or "new targeted" agents in cancer requires a comprehensive understanding of the target protein. This understanding is expected to improve the identification of patients who most likely will benefit from treatment with a specific inhibitor, such as aprinocarsen. In order to better understand the role of PKC-alpha in nervous system malignancies we here review the published literature on PKC-alpha expression in nervous system tumors, including glioblastoma multiforme. In pre-clinical experiments aprinocarsen had demonstrated anti-tumor activity, in particular in animal models of glioblastoma. Thus, clinical study CS10 with aprinocarsen was undertaken in patients with central nervous system (CNS) malignancies. The results of this study and considerations for future clinical studies in CNS tumors are reviewed.

Treatment of rat gliosarcoma brain tumors by HSV-based multigene therapy combined with radiosurgery

Our laboratory has employed replication-defective herpes simplex virus type 1 gene transfer vectors for treatment of animal models of human malignant glioblastoma. The base vectors were defective for the immediate early (IE) genes ICP4, ICP27, and ICP22 but expressed the IE gene ICP0, which can arrest tumor cell division, and an IE thymidine kinase (α-tk) gene construct that mediates suicide gene therapy (SGT) in the presence of ganciclovir (GCV). Previously, we reported that SGT using ICP0/α-tk vectors in nude mouse models of glioblastoma was improved by coexpression of the gap-junction-forming protein connexin43 (Cx43) or human tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα). We also showed that further gains in therapeutic outcome could be achieved by combining TNFα-enhanced SGT with gamma-knife radiosurgery (GKR). To expand these observations, we have first repeated these studies in immunocompetent rats with brain tumors derived from implanted 9L gliosarcoma cells and second compared the most efficient vector from this study with a new recombinant vector, NUREL-C2, which expressed both TNFα and Cx43 along with ICP0 and α-tk. Results from the first part indicated that our ICP0/α-tk/TNFα vector in combination with GKR provides an effective therapy although this treatment was not statistically better than GKR combined with the ICP0/α-tk/Cx43 vector. Our observations in the second part suggested that NUREL-C2 may be more effective than the ICP0/α-tk/TNFα vector in combination treatments with GCV (P = 0.08) or GCV plus GKR (P = 0.10). GKR significantly enhanced the efficacy of NUREL-C2/GCV treatment (P = 0.02) as well as other virus/GCV treatments (P ≤ 0.05). Conversely, the efficacy of GKR was significantly improved by both the ICP0/α-tk/TNFα vector and NUREL-C2 in combination with GCV (P = 0.02 and P < 0.01, respectively). Together these results indicate that NUREL-C2 may be an attractive candidate for Phase I gene-therapy safety studies in patients with recurrent malignant glioblastoma.

Controlled release of NF κB decoy oligonucleotides from biodegradable polymer microparticles

The objective of this study was to evaluate a poly( dl-lactic- co-glycolic acid)/poly(ethylene glycol) (PLGA/PEG) delivery system for nuclear factor-kappa B (NF κB) decoy phosphorothioated oligonucleotides (ODNs). PLGA/PEG microparticles loaded with ODNs were fabricated with entrapment efficiencies up to 70%. The effects of PEG contents (0, 5, and 10 wt%), ODN loading densities (0.4, 4, and 40 μg/mg), and pH of the incubation medium (pH 5, 7.4, and 10) on ODN release kinetics from the PLGA/PEG microparticles were investigated in vitro for up to 28 days. The release profiles in pH 7.4 phosphate buffered saline (PBS) were characterized by an initial burst during the first 2 days, a linear release phase until day 18, and a final release phase for the rest of the period. Up to 85% of the ODNs were released after 28 days in pH 7.4 PBS regardless of the ODN loading density and PEG content. Higher ODN loading densities resulted in lower entrapment efficiencies and greater initial burst effects. The bulk degradation of PLGA was not significantly affected by the PEG content and ODN loading density, but significantly accelerated at acidic buffer pH. Under acidic and basic conditions, the aggregation of microparticles resulted in significantly lower cumulative mass of released ODNs than that released at neutral pH. The effects of pH were reduced by the incorporation of PEG into PLGA microparticles. Since the PLGA degradation products are acidic, PLGA/PEG microparticles might provide a better ODN delivery vehicle than PLGA microparticles. These results suggest that PLGA/PEG microparticles are useful as delivery vehicles for controlled release of ODNs and merit further investigation in cell culture and animal models of glioblastoma.