Year: 2009
Type: review
Abstract: Brain tumors exhibit marked and aberrant blood vessel formation indicating angiogenic endothelial cells as a potential target for brain tumor treatment. The brain tumor blood vessels are used for nutrient delivery, and possibly for cancer cell migration. The process of angiogenesis is complex and involves multiple players. The current angiogenesis inhibitors used in clinical trials mostly target single angiogenic proteins and so far show limited effects on tumor growth. Besides the conventional angiogenesis inhibitors, RNA-based inhibitors such as small-interfering RNAs (siRNAs) are being analyzed for their capacity to silence the message of proteins involved in neovascularization. More recently, a new family of non-coding RNAs, named angiomirs [microRNAs (miRNAs) involved in angiogenesis] has emerged. These small RNAs have the advantage over siRNAs in that they have the potential of silencing multiple messages at the same time and therefore they might become therapeutically relevant in a "one-hit multiple-target" context against brain tumor angiogenesis. In this review we will discuss the emerging technologies in anti-angiogenesis emphasizing on RNA-based therapeutics.
Source: Cell Adhesion & Migration
DOI: 10.4161/cam.3.2.7910
Authors: Thomas Würdinger, Bakhos A. Tannous
Institutions: Harvard University, Massachusetts General Hospital
Language: English
Subfield: Molecular Biology
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,306
Funder: American Brain Tumor Association
OpenAlex ID: W1968518684