Targeting of brain tumors by bone marrow-derived macrophages and Dendritic Cells
This research focused on the question of whether bone marrow-derived cells, such as macrophages or dendritic cells, target brain tumors. Brain tumors are tissues composed of cells with abnormal growth. There are different types of brain tumors and all of them have to be treated because their growth can impair or disrupt the normal functioning of the body. The body by itself it is not able to get rid of them because the cells we have in our immune system do not migrate to the brain in insufficient numbers and it is rare to have a disease in the brain. The current treatments for the attack of brain tumors are surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation. Researchers are currently looking for new options to treat them, because the current treatments are not effective. In this lab, we induced immunotherapy to use it as an option of treatment. Bone marrow was extracted from mice and differentiated into macrophages and dendritic cells. After we labeled them with a fluorescent marker, they were injected in other mice with brain tumors. Mice were euthanized and the tissues were sectioned. When the tissues were scanned with a laser scanner we saw that the cells migrated to other tissues, but not to the brain. Injection through the tail vein of mice with bone marrow-derived macrophages and dendritic cells do not enhance the activation of T- cells in the brain because they do not migrate there.
School:
University of Puerto Rico at Aguadilla
Department:
Biology
Research Advisor:
Edward Roy
Department of Research Advisor:
Pathology
Year of Publication:
2007