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Neurotherapeutics 2022 May 16. Epub 2022 May 16.

Department of Pathology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA.

Advances in the understanding of the molecular biology of central nervous system (CNS) tumors prompted a new World Health Organization (WHO) classification scheme in 2021, only 5 years after the prior iteration. The 2016 version was the first to include specific molecular alterations in the diagnoses of a few tumors, but the 2021 system greatly expanded this approach, with over 40 tumor types and subtypes now being defined by their key molecular features. Many tumors have also been reconceptualized into new "supercategories," including adult-type diffuse gliomas, pediatric-type diffuse low- and high-grade gliomas, and circumscribed astrocytic gliomas. Read More

Neurospine 2022 May 16. Epub 2022 May 16.

Department of Neurosurgery, Nagoya University School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan.

The study of genetic alterations and molecular biology in central nervous system (CNS) tumors has improved the accuracy of estimations of patient prognosis and tumor categorization. Therefore, the updated 2021 World Health Organization (WHO) classification includes various diagnostic genes, molecules, and pathways for diagnosis, as well as histological findings. These findings are expected both to have diagnostic applications and to facilitate new targeted therapies that target tumor-specific genetic changes and molecular biology. Read More

Indian J Pathol Microbiol 2022 May;65(Supplement):S68-S72

Department of Pathology, Neuropathology Division, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India.

Ependymomas can arise along the entire neuraxis; however, they possess site-specific unique molecular alterations and a methylome pattern which is directly related with the prognostic outcomes. Since 2016, when the updated fourth edition of World Health Organization (WHO) classification of tumors of the central nervous system was published, it has been emphasized to classify ependymomas by anatomic site and molecular signatures associated genetic alterations so that classification of the disease reflects its underlying biology. In continuation, the fifth edition of the WHO classification of CNS tumors introduces major changes, including site-specific molecular profiles as the basis of classifying ependymomas. Read More

Neuro Oncol 2022 Apr 5. Epub 2022 Apr 5.

Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.

Background: Myxopapillary ependymoma (MPE) is a heterogeneous disease regarding histopathology and outcome. The underlying molecular biology is poorly understood, and markers that reliably predict the patients' clinical course are unknown.

Methods: We assembled a cohort of 185 tumors classified as MPE based on DNA methylation. Read More

Int J Mol Sci 2022 Mar 16;23(6). Epub 2022 Mar 16.

Istituto di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche "Giulio Natta", Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, 00185 Rome, Italy.

The present investigation aimed to explore the intact proteome of tissues of pediatric brain tumors of different WHO grades and localizations, including medulloblastoma, pilocytic astrocytoma, and glioblastoma, in comparison with the available data on ependymoma, to contribute to the understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the onset and progression of these pathologies. Tissues have been homogenized in acidic water-acetonitrile solutions containing proteases inhibitors and analyzed by LC-high resolution MS for proteomic characterization and label-free relative quantitation. Tandem MS spectra have been analyzed by either manual inspection or software elaboration, followed by experimental/theoretical MS fragmentation data comparison by bioinformatic tools. Read More