Antisense Molecular Therapy in Cerebral Gliomas

Despite innovative therapeutic strategies, the expectative of life in patients affected by cerebral gliomas remain dismal. Malignant gliomas represent a class of infiltrative and aggressive neoplasms that are generally resistant to multimodal approach. The efficacy of classical anti-cancer strategies is seriously limited by lack of specific therapies against malignant cells. Glial tumors seem to be able to create a favorable environment for the invasion of glioma cells in cerebral parenchyma when they combine with the extracellular matrix via cell surface receptors. Recent advances in molecular and tumor biology have lead to a new class of modern antitumoral agents. Antisense oligonucleotides are synthetic stretches of DNA which hybridize with specific mRNA strands. The specificity of hybridization makes antisense method an interesting strategy to selectively modulate the expression of genes involved in tumorigenesis. In this review, molecular targets, clinical and experimental studies about the use of antisense oligonucleotides in cerebral gliomas treatment are reported.