Lab study looks at tiny tubes that link brain tumor cells to healthy brain cells
Original title: MARCKS as a mediator and target for pathological tunneling nanotubes between patient-derived glioblastoma cells and astrocytes.
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 done with cells in the lab, not in people.
The short version
In the lab, scientists found a protein that seems to help glioblastoma: The fastest-growing type of glioma (grade 4). Treatment usually starts soon after diagnosis: surgery first, then radiation and chemotherapy. See the glossary cells build tiny tubes to nearby healthy brain cells.
What was studied. Researchers used glioblastoma: The fastest-growing type of glioma (grade 4). Treatment usually starts soon after diagnosis: surgery first, then radiation and chemotherapy. See the glossary cells taken from patients, a lab-grown tumor cell line called U87, and normal human astrocytes, which are healthy support cells in the brain. They tested a protein called MARCKS, using a small piece of that protein and drugs that act on a related cell signal called PKC.
What they found. Tumor cells and healthy brain cells connected to each other with tiny tubes, called tunneling nanotubes. The study showed that part of the MARCKS protein, and the PKC signal, play a role in how these tubes form and work. The abstract does not report any numbers or patient results.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: Scientists are still trying to understand how glioblastoma: The fastest-growing type of glioma (grade 4). Treatment usually starts soon after diagnosis: surgery first, then radiation and chemotherapy. See the glossary cells resist treatment. One idea is that tumor cells use these tiny tubes to get help from healthy brain cells nearby. This work points to MARCKS as something that might be blocked in the future. That is a possible target for research, not a treatment.
What it doesn't mean: This does not mean a new treatment is coming soon. The work was done with cells in the lab, not in people. No one was treated, and nothing here shows that people live longer or feel better. There is no drug from this study that a doctor can give you. It is not a cure.
Source: PubMed, July 13, 2026 · Read the original
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