title: Donor-derived brain tumor following neural stem cell transplantation in an ataxia telangiectasia patient.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Neural stem cells are currently being investigated as potential therapies for neurodegenerative diseases, stroke, and trauma. However, concerns have been raised over the safety of this experimental therapeutic approach, including, for example, whether there is the potential for tumors to develop from transplanted stem cells.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A boy with ataxia telangiectasia (AT) was treated with intracerebellar and intrathecal injection of human fetal neural stem cells. Four years after the first treatment he was diagnosed with a multifocal brain tumor. The biopsied tumor was diagnosed as a glioneuronal neoplasm. We compared the tumor cells and the patient's peripheral blood cells by fluorescent in situ hybridization using X and Y chromosome probes, by PCR for the amelogenin gene X- and Y-specific alleles, by MassArray for the ATM patient specific mutation and for several SNPs, by PCR for polymorphic microsatellites, and by human leukocyte antigen (HLA) typing. Molecular and cytogenetic studies showed that the tumor was of nonhost origin suggesting it was derived from the transplanted neural stem cells. Microsatellite and HLA analysis demonstrated that the tumor is derived from at least two donors.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This is the first report of a human brain tumor complicating neural stem cell therapy. The findings here suggest that neuronal stem/progenitor cells may be involved in gliomagenesis and provide the first example of a donor-derived brain tumor. Further work is urgently needed to assess the safety of these therapies.
authors.affiliation: Cancer Research Center, Sheba Medical Center and Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
authors.forename: Ninette
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Amariglio
authors.forename: Abraham
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hirshberg
authors.forename: Bernd W
authors.initials: BW
authors.lastname: Scheithauer
authors.forename: Yoram
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cohen
authors.forename: Ron
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Loewenthal
authors.forename: Luba
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Trakhtenbrot
authors.forename: Nurit
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Paz
authors.forename: Maya
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Koren-Michowitz
authors.forename: Dalia
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Waldman
authors.forename: Leonor
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Leider-Trejo
authors.forename: Amos
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Toren
authors.forename: Shlomi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Constantini
authors.forename: Gideon
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rechavi
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001260:Ataxia Telangiectasia / Q000601:surgery*; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D019520:Living Donors; D008297:Male; D009474:Neurons / Q000473:pathology* / Q000637:transplantation*; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000473:pathology*