Over the last two years, significant energy and resources have been put toward identifying and developing research projects that are important and relevant to brain cancer research. Using human patient samples, animal models, and laboratory tumor cultures, our researchers are actively pursuing the answers to the most challenging problems in brain tumor cell biology. Three major research initiatives have been launched: (1) Tumor Cell Biology; (2) Biological Informatics; and (3) Experimental Therapeutics.

These research initiatives focus on identifying and/or characterizing one or more of the following themes of brain cancer research:

• identification of pro-cancer events that lead to brain tumor development
• characterization of genes and proteins that contribute to brain cancer biology or that can serve as therapeutic targets
• identification of genes and proteins that can be used to identify and classify different tumors into prognostic categories allowing for treatment stratification
• research and development of novel approaches to treating brain cancers. Examples of focus groups and projects that have emerged from the first two years of research are described below.
  

Focus Groups

• Adult tumors of the brain and spinal cord, Cell and Molecular Studies
• Role of Neuropoiesis and Neural Stem Cell Biology in the Etiology of Adult Brain Tumors
• Neuropoietic Plasticity and Purpose of the Adult Brain with Glioma
• Role Metalloproteinase Biology in the Development and Metastasis of Glioma
• Role of the oncogene, MLF1-interacting protein, in the Etiology and Biology of Glioma
• Functional Genomics, Metabolomics and Proteonomics Studies of Adult and Pediatric Central Nervous System Tumors
  Adult tumors of the brain and spinal cord, Experimental Therapeutics
• Safety and Efficacy of VSV Cytolytics for the Treatment of High-grade Gliomas
• Safety and Efficacy of DNA-based enzymatic molecules for the Treatment of High-grade Gliomas
• Safety and Efficacy of Cannabinoid Chemotherapeutics for the Treatment of High-grade Gliomas
• Drug delivery systems for Blood-Brain Barrier Transit and Brain Tumor Targeting
• Intraparenchymal GEL Matrix Systems for Effective Delivery of Therapeutic Agents into the Brain