OBJECTIVE The herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase (HSVtk)/ganciclovir suicide gene therapy system has been considered as one of the most promising therapeutic strategies for malignant gliomas. We have been using HSVtk gene-transduced neural stem cells (NSCtk) that possess an ability to migrate toward a tumor mass for the treatment of experimental brain tumors. In the present study, we evaluat...

The proteolipid protein (PLP) gene codes for the major central nervous system myelin protein. We have studied the effects of different agents on the expression of the PLP gene in C6 glioma cells. Retinoic acid (RA), but not dexamethasone, estradiol, insulin, growth hormone, or vitamin D3, had a drastic effect, increasing 10-20-fold the level of PLP mRNA. Concomitantly, RA also induced the appea...

Protective effects of quinic acids from Aster scaber on tetrahydropapaveroline (THP)-induced cell toxicity were evaluated in rat C6 glioma cells. Among 4 quinic acid derivatives tested, (-) 4,5-dicaffeoyl quinic acid (QA3) exhibited the highest protective effect against THP-induced cell toxicity. C6 cells treated with THP exhibited the decrease in the survival rate and activities of glutathione...

Curcumin (Cur), a natural polyphenol of Curcuma longa, has been recently reported to possess antitumor activities. However, due to its poor aqueous solubility and low biological availability, the clinical application of Cur is quite limited. The encapsulation of hydrophobic drugs into nanoparticles is an effective way to improve their pharmaceutical activities. In this research, nanomicelles lo...

BACKGROUND There is no highly effective chemotherapy for malignant gliomas to date. We found that dimethylaminomicheliolide (DMAMCL), a selective inhibitor of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) stem/progenitor cells, inhibited the growth of glioma cells. METHODS The distribution of DMAMCL in brain was analyzed by an ultraperformance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) system. The a...

Peripheral-type benzodiazepine receptors (PBR) are constituted by three protein components, the isoquinoline binding protein (IBP), the voltage-dependent anion channel (VDAC), and the adenine nucleotide transporter (ANT). Recently, we found that high levels of PBR ligand binding in glioma cell lines correlate with in vitro tumorigenicity. To study whether enhanced PBR expression is causative or...

To date, imaging of malignant glioma remains challenging. In positron emission tomography-related diagnostic imaging, differential tumor uptake of 3'-deoxy-3'-[(18)F] fluorothymidine ([(18)F]FLT) has been shown to reflect the levels of cell proliferation and DNA synthesis. However, additional biomarkers for tumors are urgently required. Aberrant levels of glutathione transferase (GST) activity ...

In this study, the effect of thyroid hormone (triiodothyronine, T(3)) on the secretion of mitogenic growth factors in astrocytes and C6 glioma cells was examined. The proliferating activity of T(3) could be due, at least in part, to the astrocyte secretion of acidic and basic fibroblast growth factor (aFGF and bFGF), tumor necrosis factor-beta, and transforming growth factor-beta. In contrast, ...

Animal studies have demonstrated that selective tropism of mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) for glioma may be used as a means of selective delivery of cytotoxic payloads. Endometrial Regenerative Cells (ERC) are a population of mesenchymal-like cells which possesse pluripotent differentiation capacity and is characterized by unique surface markers and growth factor production. In this study we soug...

The invasive and infiltrative nature of tumor cells leads to the poor prognosis of glioma. Currently, novel therapeutic means to eliminate the tumor cells without damaging the normal brain tissue are still strongly demanded. Significant attentions had been paid to stem cell-based therapy and neural stem cell (NSC) had been considered as one of the efficient delivery vehicles for targeting thera...