title: Autophagy in brain tumors: a new target for therapeutic intervention.
abstract: The role of autophagy, traditionally considered a cellular homeostatic and recycling mechanism, has expanded dramatically to include an involvement in discrete stages of tumor initiation and development. Gliomas are the most aggressive and also the most common brain malignancies. Current treatment modalities have only a modest effect on patient outcomes. Resistance to apoptosis, a hallmark of most cancers, has driven the search for novel targets in cancer therapy. The autophagy lysosomal pathway is one such target that is being explored in multiple cancers including gliomas and is a promising avenue for further therapeutic development. This review summarizes our current understanding of the autophagic process and its potential utility as a target for glioma therapy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294-0017, USA.
authors.forename: Niroop
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kaza
authors.forename: Latika
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kohli
authors.forename: Kevin A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Roth
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001343:Autophagy / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology*; D002471:Cell Transformation, Neoplastic / Q000235:genetics; D015195:Drug Design; D005910:Glioma / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D009154:Mutation / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents