title: Molecular biology of gliomas.
abstract: Gliomas are the most common primary neoplasm of the brain. Unfortunately, they are often refractory to treatment and portend a poor prognosis. However, recent discoveries have shed light on the molecular events driving glioma growth, including abnormalities of three major molecular pathways: extracellular growth factors and their receptors (eg, EGF/EGFR and PDGF/PDGFR), signal transduction cascades (eg, RAS and AKT), and cell proliferation controls (eg, INK4A-ARF). Each of these abnormalities is described in detail. Efforts to inhibit abnormally activated pathways are underway through multi-institutional clinical trials.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, 1275 York Avenue, New York, NY 10021, USA. Lassmana@mskcc.org
authors.forename: Andrew B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Lassman
mesh_terms: D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D005910:Glioma / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008967:Molecular Biology; D015398:Signal Transduction