A gene called TNFRSF12A may help aggressive gliomas grow and resist chemotherapy
Original title: Identification of TNFRSF12A as a key regulator of stemness and immunosuppression in a novel glioma subtype via multi-omics analysis and experimental validation.
How far along is this research?
- Lab cells
- Animals
- Review
- Tested in people
This was done on cells in a lab, not in people. It is a very early step.
This was only done in lab cells and mice, not in people.
The short version
Scientists found a gene that seems to help some brain tumors grow and shrug off chemotherapy, and blocking it slowed tumors in lab tests and in mice.
What was studied. Researchers looked at gene activity in 157 glioma: A tumor that starts in the glial cells, the support cells of the brain and spinal cord. Gliomas are graded 1 to 4 by how fast they tend to grow. See the glossary tumor samples from a public database. They sorted the tumors into two groups, then narrowed a list of genes down to one gene, TNFRSF12A, and tested it in tumor cells and in mice.
What they found. One of the two tumor groups had more stem cell like features. That group also stood up better to the chemotherapy drug temozolomide. When the researchers turned down TNFRSF12A in glioma: A tumor that starts in the glial cells, the support cells of the brain and spinal cord. Gliomas are graded 1 to 4 by how fast they tend to grow. See the glossary stem cells, the cells grew less and lost some of their stem cell markers. Those cells also responded better to temozolomide. In mice, turning down the gene slowed tumor growth and worked well together with temozolomide.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: This points to a possible new target for future brain tumor drugs. If a drug could block this gene's protein, it might make chemotherapy work better in hard to treat gliomas. That is a hope for the future, not something available now.
What it doesn't mean: This does not mean there is a new treatment. The work was done with computer analysis, tumor cells, and mice. No people were treated in this study. There is no drug you can ask your doctor for based on this. It is not a cure, and it is not a promise of one. Research like this often takes many years, and much of it never turns into a treatment.
Source: PubMed, August 1, 2026 · Read the original
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