title: Mouse models of brain tumors and their applications in preclinical trials.
abstract: Primary brain tumors, including gliomas and medulloblastomas, often represent the most devastating and difficult-to-treat tumors, and are thought to arise from glial cells and/or their precursors or the external granule cell layer, respectively. The majority of genetic alterations characteristic of the human brain tumors are thought to occur in genes encoding proteins involved in signal transduction or cell cycle regulation. Accurate recapitulation of these genetic alterations using genetically engineered mouse models allows for in vivo modeling of brain tumors with similar histopathology, etiology, and biology. These mouse models, in turn, increase our understanding of brain tumor initiation, formation, progression, and metastasis, providing an experimental system to discover novel therapeutic targets and test various therapeutic agents.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cancer Biology and Genetics, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York 10021, USA.
authors.forename: Elena I
authors.initials: EI
authors.lastname: Fomchenko
authors.forename: Eric C
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Holland
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000145:classification / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D015195:Drug Design; D004353:Drug Evaluation, Preclinical / Q000379:methods; D005910:Glioma / Q000145:classification / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008527:Medulloblastoma / Q000145:classification / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D051379:Mice; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D008954:Models, Biological; D011859:Radiography
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents