Targeting Cancer Stem Cells in Pediatric Fibrillary Astroctyoma

The ultimate goal of this proposal by principal investigators Dr. David H. Rowitch, Dr. C. David James, and Dr. Graeme Hodgson, Ph.D. of the University of California, San Francisco is to change the landscape of pediatric grade II glioma (fibrillary astrocytoma) research by investigating the biological regulation of cancer stem cells. The three specific aims of this program are as follows: 1) investigate the function of OLIG2-positive stem cells in pediatric low-grade glioma, 2) develop novel mouse orthotopic models of low-grade glioma, and 3) identity genes that cause diffuse low-grade astrocytomas (DLGAs) and test the efficacy of small inhibitory nucleic acids (siNA) that target these genes in preclinical models of DLGAs.

Funded in 2007.