title: Tumor-associated epilepsy and glioma: are there common genetic  pathways?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Patients with glioma exhibit a great variability in clinical symptoms apart from variations in response to therapy and survival. Many patients present with epileptic seizures at disease onset, especially in case of low-grade gliomas, but not all have seizures. A large proportion of patients develop refractory seizures. It is likely that the variability in epileptic symptoms cannot exclusively be explained by tumor-related factors, but rather reflects complex interaction between tumor-related, environmental and hereditary factors.
  
  
  METHODS
  No data exist on susceptibility genes associated with epileptic symptoms in patients with glioma. However, an increasing number of candidate genes have been proposed for other focal epilepsies such as temporal lobe epilepsy. Some of the susceptibility candidate genes associated with focal epilepsy may contribute to epileptic symptoms also in patients with glioma.
  
  
  RESULTS
  This review presents an update on studies on genetic polymorphisms and focal epilepsy and brings forward putative candidate genes for tumor-associated epilepsy, based on the assumption that common etiological pathways may exist for glioma development and glioma-associated seizures. Conclusion. Genes involved in the immune response, in synaptic transmission and in cell cycle control are discussed that may play a role in the pathogenesis of tumor growth as well as epileptic symptoms in patients with gliomas.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, Neurology, University Hospital Uppsala, Uppsala, Sweden.
authors.forename: Shala Ghaderi
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Berntsson
authors.forename: Beatrice
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Malmer
authors.forename: Melissa L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Bondy
authors.forename: Mingqi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Qu
authors.forename: Anja
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Smits
mesh_terms: D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000235:genetics*; D004828:Epilepsies, Partial / Q000209:etiology / Q000235:genetics*; D008040:Genetic Linkage; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D005910:Glioma / Q000150:complications / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic