gms | German Medical Science

58. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie e. V. (DGNC)

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie (DGNC) e. V.

26. bis 29.04.2007, Leipzig

Expression of tumour stem cell markers in human astrocytomas of different WHO grades

Expression von Stammzell-Markern in humanen Astrozytomen unterschiedlicher WHO-Grade

Meeting Abstract

  • corresponding author J. Held-Feindt - Klinik für Neurochirurgie im Universitätsklinikum Schleswig-Holstein, Campus Kiel, Kiel
  • Y. Ma - Department of Neurosurgery, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
  • R. Mentlein - Institut für Anatomie, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Kiel
  • F. Knerlich - Klinik für Neurochirurgie im Universitätsklinikum Schleswig-Holstein, Campus Kiel, Kiel
  • H. M. Mehdorn - Klinik für Neurochirurgie im Universitätsklinikum Schleswig-Holstein, Campus Kiel, Kiel

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie. 58. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Neurochirurgie e.V. (DGNC). Leipzig, 26.-29.04.2007. Düsseldorf: German Medical Science GMS Publishing House; 2007. DocP 076

The electronic version of this article is the complete one and can be found online at: http://www.egms.de/en/meetings/dgnc2007/07dgnc331.shtml

Published: April 11, 2007

© 2007 Held-Feindt et al.
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Outline

Text

Objective: Astrocytomas are the most common types of primary brain tumours accounting for approximately 13.3% of all newly diagnosed brain tumours. With discovery of neural stem cells (NSCs) in the central nervous system, there has been a wide speculation that a normal NSC or progenitor cell might be a principal target of mutations that lead to a brain tumour. Recent evidences demonstrate that a minority of tumour cells with NSC properties exists in brain tumours including ependymomas, glioblastomas, and medulloblastomas, which are called tumour stem cells (TSCs).

Methods: mRNA expression of seven different stem cell markers (CD133, Nestin, SOX-2, Musashi-1, Flt-4, Endoglin and CXCR4) was examined in normal brain tissue (NBT) and human astrocytomas of different WHO grades using real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. ?CT values were calculated in relation to an internal standard. Protein expression of same markers was determined by immunohistochemistry. Amounts of positive stained cells were counted in relation to unstained ones (% of positive stained cells). Confocal microscopy was used to investigate co-localization of stem cell markers with GFAP, MIB-1, and among themselves.

Results: In relation to NBT high CD133, Nestin, SOX-2, and Musashi-1 mRNA expression levels and amounts of positive stained cells could be observed especially in astrocytomas of WHO grade IV. Among these four markers, the highest mRNA expression level was found for Nestin, the lowest one for CD133. While also great quantities of Nestin positive cells could be detected in high malignant astrocytomas, the percentage of CD133 positive cells was lower than that of Nestin but higher than that of SOX-2 and Musashi-1. Correlation analysis determined positive correlations between the percentages of Nestin, CD133, SOX-2, and Musashi-1 immunoassayed cells and the pathological grades of astrocytomas. Confocal microscopy showed in some cases a co-localization of CD133, Nestin, SOX-2, and Musashi-1 with GFAP, but never with the proliferation marker MIB-1. CD133, Nestin, SOX-2 were expressed alone or in combination with each other. In contrast to this, it seemed that Musashi-1 was expressed only together with CD133, Nestin, or SOX-2.

Conclusions: These results demonstrated a complex gene expression pattern of putative tumour stem cell markers in astrocytomas of different WHO grades.