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Genetics of the malignant progression of astrocytoma
Author(s) -
Mikkelsen Tom,
Cairncross J. Gregory,
Cavenee Webster K.
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
journal of cellular biochemistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.028
H-Index - 165
eISSN - 1097-4644
pISSN - 0730-2312
DOI - 10.1002/jcb.240460103
Subject(s) - malignancy , biology , population , cancer , malignant transformation , genetics , medicine , environmental health
Abstract The tendency of human cancers to progress towards a more malignant state over time is a well described biological phenomenon. Recent investigations elucidating the genetic nature of malignancy and the possible mechanisms responsible for this evolution have suggested that a sequential pathway may exist whereby a cell population accumulates a nested set of genetic aberrations which endow it with the ability to overwhelm other populations and dominate the tumor. Human astrocytomas are a dramatic case in point, where specific genetic events of amplification and deletion are seemingly related to the stages of malignancy. The identification of these aberrations represents the first stage in the dissection of the temporal process of this cancer. Its augmentation with functional analyses will likely allow a fuller genetic description of in vivo transformation.