Search

Background: The revolution in molecular biology that has taken place over the past 2 decades has provided researchers with new and powerful tools for detailed study of the molecular mechanisms giving rise to the spectrum of pediatric brain tumors. Application of these tools has greatly advanced our understanding of the molecular pathogenesis of these lesions., Review: After familiarizing readers with some promising new techniques in the field of oncogenomics, this review will present the current state of knowledge as it pertains to the molecular biology of pediatric brain neoplasms. Along the way, we hope to highlight specific instances where the detailed mechanistic knowledge acquired thus far may be exploited for therapeutic advantage.

RAPID ADVANCES IN the technology used to study nucleic acids have revealed a great deal regarding the underlying biology of cancer. Most cancers arise as a result of chromosomal rearrangements and deoxyribonucleic acid mutations that lead to the activation of proto-oncogenes and loss of function of tumor suppressor genes. There are a number of different molecular routes that lead to these common goals, necessitating several different techniques of mutational analysis. Although many of these techniques can be difficult in practice, most are conceptually simple. We discuss several of the current techniques in cytogenetics and molecular genetics that are widely used in cancer biology laboratories. Understanding the molecular events that lead to cancer should allow the future development of targeted, nontoxic therapeutics similar to modern-day antibiotics. These technologies are being progressively applied in clinical neurosurgery, where they will be used to detect, diagnose, stratify, and treat cancers of the nervous system. High demand from an increasingly educated patient population means that neurosurgeons will need to be familiar with many of these techniques.