Nature versus nurture in glioblastoma: Microenvironment and genetics can both drive mesenchymal transcriptional signature

摘要

Glioblastomas (GBMs) are the most common malignant brain tumors, but they are currently incurable. It is hoped that targeted therapies may prove effective in improving survival. Indeed, efforts to integrate multimodal molecular and clinical data for brain tumors have begun to yield a clearer picture of these aggressive neoplasms. The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA)1 and the Repository of Molecular Brain Neoplasia Data (REMBRANDT)2 both support numerous data sets for mRNA and miRNA expression, DNA copy number alterations, sequencing data, and both magnetic resonance and histological images. Many of the molecular underpinnings of GBM have been identified, the most abundant mutations have been catalogued, and perturbed signaling pathways have been elucidated.1 Mutations in isoci-trate dehydrogenase 1 and 2 have been identified, and a relationship to secondary GBM has been established.