Children with Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) are prone to the development of low-grade brain tumors affecting the nerve carrying vision to the brain, called the optic nerve. Where these tumors come from has been a matter of scientific debate. Using new genetic modeling strategies, recent studies indicate that optic gliomas can arise from two different cell types.
Anne Solga, PhD, a former graduate student in the laboratory of Dr. David Gutmann, working with her colleagues in the NF Center and the University of California-San Diego, now report that optic gliomas develop from both neural stem cells and progenitor cells. Using novel genetically-engineered mouse strains, she found that loss of Nf1 expression in neural stem cells leads to optic glioma formation by 3 months of age. In striking contrast, Nf1 loss in progenitor cells, called pre-oligodendrocyte precursor cells (pre-OPCs), causes optic gliomas to form nearly 3 months later (at 6 months of age).
These findings demonstrate that the specific cell of origin is one factor that determines when optic gliomas will form. Importantly, Dr. Solga showed that pre-OPCs do not arise from neural stem cells, indicating two separate paths to tumor formation exist.
This work appears in the journal Oncotarget.
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Solga AC, Toonen JA, Pan Y, Cimino PJ, Ma Y, Castillon GA, Gianino SM, Ellisman MH, Lee DY, Gutmann DH. The cell of origin dictates the temporal course of neurofibromatosis-1 (NF1) low-grade glioma formation. Oncotarget. 2017 May 3. doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.17589. PMID: 28525381