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October 2006
Children's Research Institute News Brief
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Bernard L. Maria, MD, MBA
Executive Director
Darby Children's
Research Inst. |
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Inderjit Singh, PhD
Scientific Director
Darby Children's
Research Inst. |
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Lab works to find cure for spinal cord tumors
With new funding secured from the Malia CORD Foundation in July, researchers in Dr. Bernard Maria's DCRI lab are able to continue their research on spinal cord tumors.
The study is evaluating the efficacy of hyaluronan acid (HA) oligomers in spinal cord gliomas. Researchers hope the inhibitors will
target the molecules that interfere with invasiveness, drug resistance, and resistance to chemotherapy.
"What we have is a novel approach in that the molecule that we're targeting - the HA inhibitor -- has many downstream effects," says
Jennie Gilg, a PhD who manages the lab. "It affects many targets in the cell."
Dr. Maria began related research in 1996, and implemented a spinal cord model last year in the DCRI lab. Preliminary data shows the
therapy is working well in animal models.
"But whether or not that translates into human therapy, we don't yet know," explains Gilg. "Some things are lost in that transition,
but hopefully this will work."
One of the reasons the lab was chosen for the CORD Foundation grant, says Gilg, is the unique collaboration between Dr. Maria, a practicing
physician, and Dr. Bryan Toole, a basic scientist.
"It's sort of unusual for them to be working so closely together," she notes. "It makes a really strong team, one that can get treatment to the
patient as soon as possible, and I think the Malia CORD Foundation found this very attractive. Private foundations are interested on clinical results."
Dr. Maria and the lab are working closely with other investigators, too, including several focusing on cell isolation and new peptides in the
Department of Cell Biology, pharmacology in the College of Pharmacy, and drug resistance in the Departments of Neurosciences and Psychiatry in neighboring DCRI labs. The open lab format in the DCRI and Dr. Maria's propensity to collaborate are key, says Gilg.
Tumors like the one Malia has - central nervous system tumors found in the brain and spinal cord - are the leading cause of death from illness
in children. That's because they're very difficult to safely resect with surgery, and large doses of radiotherapy or chemotherapy can damage the spinal cord.
"You can't totally remove these kinds of tumors with surgery, because there's no clear line of demarcation between the tumor and healthy tissue,"
explains Gilg. The tumor tissue infiltrates into the normal tissue, so surgeons are at risk of cutting away healthy tissue and possibly paralyzing
patients. Radiation is usually the preferred method of treatment.
"It's a very critical, sensitive area to treat in children, because nervous systems are still developing," notes Gilg.
That it's non-toxic makes the HA therapy she and her fellow researchers are studying an even more promising option.
"Hopefully the HA inhibitor treatment will help confine the tumor, but our goal is to get rid of it altogether," she explains.
The CORD Foundation is a huge boost of support and inspiration for these investigators. "It's given us the chance to continue with these studies and
initiate new studies that are more focused on the spinal cord," notes Gilg.
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