Medulloblastomas, embryonal neoplasms arising in the cerebellum, are the most common malignant pediatric brain tumor. We propose several lines of investigation into the roles of c-Myc and N-Myc in medulloblastoma pathobiology. The primary investigator, Dr. Charles Eberhart, is a neuropathologist with a scientific background in Drosophila genetics, who plans a career as an independent clinician scientist researching brain tumors. To accomplish his goals he requires additional training in techniques commonly used to study tumors in the laboratory, including cell culture and mouse transgenic models. Pursuing the specific aims we propose will teach Dr. Eberhart these skills, and enable him to make the transition to an independent career in cancer research. Myc transcription factors are emerging as important modulators of medulloblastoma, biology.
In Specific Aim 1 we investigate links between Myc levels in medulloblastoma specimens and clinical outcome. The effects of Myc are varied, and while several Myc targets have been isolated in fibroblasts and hematologic malignancies, it is likely that the profile of genes regulated by Myc will differ between tumor types. We therefore propose in Specific Aim 2 to identify c-Myc: targets in medulloblastoma cell lines by modulating c-Myc levels and evaluating the changes in gene expression profiles using microarrays.
In Specific Aim 3 we confirm the clinical importance of these targets by analyzing their expression in medulloblastoma tumor samples with varying c-Myc levels. Finally, in Specific Aim 4 we propose developing a novel medulloblastoma transgenic model by overexpressing c-Myc in the cerebellum of transgenic mice.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)
Type
Clinical Investigator Award (CIA) (K08)
Project #
5K08NS043279-04
Application #
6895735
Study Section
NST-2 Subcommittee (NST)
Program Officer
Fountain, Jane W
Project Start
2002-05-01
Project End
2007-04-30
Budget Start
2005-05-01
Budget End
2006-04-30
Support Year
4
Fiscal Year
2005
Total Cost
$172,422
Indirect Cost
Name
Johns Hopkins University
Department
Pediatrics
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
001910777
City
Baltimore
State
MD
Country
United States
Zip Code
21218
Eberhart, Charles G (2011) Molecular diagnostics in embryonal brain tumors. Brain Pathol 21:96-104
von Bueren, André O; Oehler, Christoph; Shalaby, Tarek et al. (2011) c-MYC expression sensitizes medulloblastoma cells to radio- and chemotherapy and has no impact on response in medulloblastoma patients. BMC Cancer 11:74
Bar, Eli E; Chaudhry, Aneeka; Farah, Mohamed H et al. (2007) Hedgehog signaling promotes medulloblastoma survival via Bc/II. Am J Pathol 170:347-55
Eberhart, Charles G; Copeland, Joshua; Abel, Ty W (2006) Brief report: S6 ribosomal protein phosphorylation in autistic frontal cortex and cerebellum: a tissue array analysis. J Autism Dev Disord 36:1131-5
Dang, L; Fan, X; Chaudhry, A et al. (2006) Notch3 signaling initiates choroid plexus tumor formation. Oncogene 25:487-91
Fan, Xing; Matsui, William; Khaki, Leila et al. (2006) Notch pathway inhibition depletes stem-like cells and blocks engraftment in embryonal brain tumors. Cancer Res 66:7445-52
Stearns, Duncan; Chaudhry, Aneeka; Abel, Ty W et al. (2006) c-myc overexpression causes anaplasia in medulloblastoma. Cancer Res 66:673-81
Su, Xiaohua; Gopalakrishnan, Vidya; Stearns, Duncan et al. (2006) Abnormal expression of REST/NRSF and Myc in neural stem/progenitor cells causes cerebellar tumors by blocking neuronal differentiation. Mol Cell Biol 26:1666-78
Boon, Kathy; Eberhart, Charles G; Riggins, Gregory J (2005) Genomic amplification of orthodenticle homologue 2 in medulloblastomas. Cancer Res 65:703-7
Eberhart, Charles G; Chaudhry, Aneeka; Daniel, Richard W et al. (2005) Increased p53 immunopositivity in anaplastic medulloblastoma and supratentorial PNET is not caused by JC virus. BMC Cancer 5:19

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