[Gene therapy in neuro-oncology].
BACKGROUND
The concept of gene therapy implies the transfer of genetic material to a cell, a tissue or an organ with the aim to cure an illness or at least to improve the clinical status of a patient. The essential components of the therapy are: a vector able to enter efficiently and selectively the target cells; and the therapeutic gene competent to cure the pathology. In cancer therapies, retroviruses are preferentially used as vectors because they only infect dividing cells. Among the most popular and successful gene therapies against cancer we find the immunotherapy, the antiangiogenic strategies, the killer-suicide genes and RNA interference against specific oncogenes.


CONCLUSIONS
Each one of these therapies have proven successful in cancer cell lines and in experimental animals where it has been shown a clear antitumoral effect in the absence of appreciable secondary effects. At present, the majority of these procedures are in clinical phases but none as yet is considered a therapeutic option.
Izquierdo
M
M
Departamento de Biología Molecular, Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain. mizquierdo@cbm.uam.es
D000818:Animals; D015316:Genetic Therapy / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D009423:Nervous System Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000628:therapy*