Granulomatous and lymphocytic hypophysitis - are they immunologically distinct?

Hypophysitis includes three histopathologically distinct entities - granulomatous, lymphocytic and xanthomatous forms. Etiopathogenesis and the immunological differences among these is not well characterized. This study aims to explore the immunopathogenesis of granulomatous and lymphocytic forms of hypophysitis.

Insulin-like growth factor binding protein-2 regulates β-catenin signaling pathway in glioma cells and contributes to poor patient prognosis.

Background: Upregulation of insulin-like growth factor binding protein 2 (IGFBP-2) is often associated with aggressiveness of glioblastoma (GBM) and contributes to poor prognosis for GBM patients. In view of the regulation of β-catenin by IGFBP-2 in breast cancer and the crucial role of β-catenin pathway in glioma invasion, proliferation and maintenance of glioma stem cells, the mechanism of regulation of β-catenin by IGFBP-2, and its role in GBM prognosis was studied.

Methods: Regulation of the β-catenin pathway was studied by immunocytochemistry, Western blot analysis, luciferase assays, and real-time RT-PCR.

Manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) is a malignant astrocytoma specific biomarker and associated with adverse prognosis in p53 expressing glioblastoma.

Background: Manganese super oxide dismutase (MnSOD) has been previously identified as one of the top regulated genes associated with poor survival in glioblastoma (GBM) patients. In the current study we have evaluated the protein expression of MnSOD across various grades of astrocytoma, studied its influence on survival of GBM patients and following recurrence.

Methods: The protein expression of MnSOD was analyzed on tumor tissue sections by immunohistochemistry on 30 diffuse astrocytomas (DA), 50 anaplastic astrocytomas (AA), 30 paired (primary and recurrent) GBM samples and 30 non-tumor brain tissues.

Glioblastoma-derived Macrophage Colony-stimulating Factor (MCSF) Induces Microglial Release of Insulin-like Growth Factor-binding Protein 1 (IGFBP1) to Promote Angiogenesis.

Glioblastoma (grade IV glioma/GBM) is the most common primary adult malignant brain tumor with poor prognosis. To characterize molecular determinants of tumor-stroma interaction in GBM, we profiled 48 serum cytokines and identified macrophage colony-stimulating factor (MCSF) as one of the elevated cytokines in sera from GBM patients. Both MCSF transcript and protein were up-regulated in GBM tissue samples through a spleen tyrosine kinase (SYK)-dependent activation of the PI3K-NFκB pathway.

Definition of a serum marker panel for glioblastoma discrimination and identification of Interleukin 1β in the microglial secretome as a novel mediator of endothelial cell survival induced by C-reactive protein.

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common malignant adult primary brain tumor. We profiled 724 cancer-associated proteins in sera of healthy individuals (n=27) and GBM (n=28) using antibody microarray. While 69 proteins exhibited differential abundance in GBM sera, a three-marker panel (LYAM1, BHE40 and CRP) could discriminate GBM sera from that of healthy donors with an accuracy of 89.

Methylation silencing of ULK2, an autophagy gene, is essential for astrocyte transformation and tumor growth.

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most aggressive type of brain tumor and shows very poor prognosis. Here, using genome-wide methylation analysis, we show that G-CIMP+ and G-CIMP-subtypes enrich distinct classes of biological processes. One of the hypermethylated genes in GBM, ULK2, an upstream autophagy inducer, was found to be down-regulated in GBM.

IDH1 mutations in diffusely infiltrating astrocytomas: grade specificity, association with protein expression, and clinical relevance.

IDH1 mutations are frequent genetic alterations in low-grade diffuse gliomas and secondary glioblastoma (GBM). To validate mutation frequency, IDH1 gene at codon 132 was sequenced in 74 diffusely infiltrating astrocytomas: diffuse astrocytoma (DA; World Health Organization [WHO] grade II), anaplastic astrocytoma (AA; WHO grade III), and GBM (WHO grade IV). All cases were immunostained with IDH1-R132H monoclonal antibody.