The Nucleotide-binding Leucine-rich Repeat (NLR) Family Member NLRX1 Mediates Protection against Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis and Represses Macrophage/Microglia-induced Inflammation

The nucleotide binding domain and leucine-rich repeat-containing (NLR) family of proteins is known to activate innate immunity, and the inflammasome-associated NLRs are prime examples. In contrast, the concept that NLRs can inhibit innate immunity is still debated, and the impact of such inhibitory NLRs in diseases shaped by adaptive immune responses is entirely unexplored. This study demonstrates that, in contrast to other NLRs that activate immunity, NLRX1 plays a protective role in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), a mouse model for multiple sclerosis. When compared with wild-type controls, Nlrx1−/− mice have significantly worsened clinical scores and heightened CNS tissue damage during EAE. NLRX1 does not alter the production of encephalitogenic T cells in the peripheral lymphatic tissue, but Nlrx1−/− mice are more susceptible to adoptively transferred myelin-reactive T cells. Analysis of the macrophage and microglial populations indicates that NLRX1 reduces activation during both active and passive EAE models. This work represents the first case of an NLR that attenuates microglia inflammatory activities and protects against a neurodegenerative disease model caused by autoreactive T cells

NLRP3 Plays a Critical Role in the Development of Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis by Mediating Th1 and Th17 Responses

The interplay between innate and adaptive immunity is important in multiple sclerosis (MS). The inflammasome complex, which activates caspase-1 to process pro–IL-1β and pro–IL-18, is rapidly emerging as a pivotal regulator of innate immunity, with nucleotide-binding domain, leucine-rich repeat containing protein family, pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3) (cryopyrin or NALP3) as a prominent player. Although the role of NLRP3 in host response to pathogen associated molecular patterns and danger associated molecular patterns is well documented, its role in autoimmune diseases is less well studied. To investigate the role of NLRP3 protein in MS, we used a mouse model of MS, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Nlrp3 expression was elevated in the spinal cords during EAE, and Nlrp3−/− mice had a dramatically delayed course and reduced severity of disease. This was accompanied by a significant reduction of the inflammatory infiltrate including macrophages, dendritic cells, CD4, and CD8+ T cells in the spinal cords of the Nlrp3−/− mice, whereas microglial accumulation remained the same. Nlrp3−/− mice also displayed improved histology in the spinal cords with reduced destruction of myelin and astrogliosis. Nlrp3−/− mice with EAE produced less IL-18, and the disease course was similar to Il18−/− mice. Furthermore, Nlrp3−/− and Il18−/− mice had similarly reduced IFN-γ and IL-17 production. Thus, NLRP3 plays a critical role in the induction of the EAE, likely through effects on capase-1–dependent cytokines which then influence Th1 and Th17

Porphyromonas gingivalis Mediates Inflammasome Repression in Polymicrobial Cultures through a Novel Mechanism Involving Reduced Endocytosis

The interleukin (IL)-1β-processing inflammasome has recently been identified as a target for pathogenic evasion of the inflammatory response by a number of bacteria and viruses. We postulated that the periodontal pathogen, Porphyromonas gingivalis may suppress the inflammasome as a mechanism for its low immunogenicity and pathogenic synergy with other, more highly immunogenic periodontal bacteria. Our results show that P. gingivalis lacks signaling capability for the activation of the inflammasome in mouse macrophages. Furthermore, P. gingivalis can suppress inflammasome activation by another periodontal bacterium, Fusobacterium nucleatum. This repression affects IL-1β processing, as well as other inflammasome-mediated processes, including IL-18 processing and cell death, in both human and mouse macrophages. F. nucleatum activates IL-1β processing through the Nlrp3 inflammasome; however, P. gingivalis repression is not mediated through reduced levels of inflammasome components. P. gingivalis can repress Nlrp3 inflammasome activation by Escherichia coli, and by danger-associated molecular patterns and pattern-associated molecular patterns that mediate activation through endocytosis. However, P. gingivalis does not suppress Nlrp3 inflammasome activation by ATP or nigericin. This suggests that P. gingivalis may preferentially suppress endocytic pathways toward inflammasome activation. To directly test whether P. gingivalis infection affects endocytosis, we assessed the uptake of fluorescent particles in the presence or absence of P. gingivalis. Our results show that P. gingivalis limits both the number of cells taking up beads and the number of beads taken up for bead-positive cells. These results provide a novel mechanism of pathogen-mediated inflammasome inhibition through the suppression of endocytosis

Liquid biopsy in central nervous system metastases: a RANO review and proposals for clinical applications

Abstract Liquid biopsies collect and analyze tumor components in body fluids, and there is an increasing interest in the investigation of liquid biopsies as a surrogate for tumor tissue in the management of both primary and secondary brain tumors. Herein we critically review available literature on spinal fluid and plasma circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and cell-free tumor (ctDNA) for diagnosis and monitoring of leptomeningeal and parenchymal brain metastases. We discuss technical issues and propose several potential applications of liquid biopsies in different clinical settings (ie, for initial diagnosis, for assessment during treatment, and for guidance of treatment decisions). Last, ongoing clinical studies on CNS metastases that include liquid biopsies are summarized, and recommendations for future clinical studies are provided

Molecular and translational advances in meningiomas.

Meningiomas are the most common primary intracranial neoplasm. The current World Health Organization (WHO) classification categorizes meningiomas based on histopathological features, but emerging molecular data demonstrate the importance of genomic and epigenomic factors in the clinical behavior of these tumors. Treatment options for symptomatic meningiomas are limited to surgical resection where possible and adjuvant radiation therapy for tumors with concerning histopathological features or recurrent disease. At present, alternative adjuvant treatment options are not available in part due to limited historical biological analysis and clinical trial investigation on meningiomas. With advances in molecular and genomic techniques in the last decade, we have witnessed a surge of interest in understanding the genomic and epigenomic landscape of meningiomas. The field is now at the stage to adopt this molecular knowledge to refine meningioma classification and introduce molecular algorithms that can guide prediction and therapeutics for this tumor type. Animal models that recapitulate meningiomas faithfully are in critical need to test new therapeutics to facilitate rapid-cycle translation to clinical trials. Here we review the most up-to-date knowledge of molecular alterations that provide insight into meningioma behavior and are ready for application to clinical trial investigation, and highlight the landscape of available preclinical models in meningiomas

Systematic review on the use of patient-reported outcome measures in brain tumor studies: part of the Response Assessment in Neuro-Oncology Patient-Reported Outcome (RANO-PRO) initiative

Background. The Response Assessment in Neuro-Oncology Patient-Reported Outcome (RANO-PRO) working group aims to provide guidance on the use of PROs in brain tumor patients. PRO measures should be of high quality, both in terms of relevance and other measurement properties. This systematic review aimed to identify PRO measures that have been used in brain tumor studies to date.Methods. A systematic literature search for articles published up to June 25, 2020 was conducted in several electronic databases. Pre-specified inclusion criteria were used to identify studies using PRO measures assessing symptoms, (instrumental) activities of daily living [(I)ADL] or health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in adult patients with glioma, meningioma, primary central nervous system lymphoma, or brain metastasis.Results. A total of 215 different PRO measures were identified in 571 published and 194 unpublished studies. The identified PRO measures include brain tumor-specific, cancer-specific, and generic instruments, as well as instruments designed for other indications or multi- or single-item study-specific questionnaires. The most frequently used instruments were the EORT QLQ-C30 and QLQ-BN20 (n = 286 and n = 247),and the FACT-Br (n = 167), however, the majority of the instruments were used only once or twice (150/215).Conclusion. Many different PRO measures assessing symptoms, (I)ADL or HROoL have been used in brain tumor studies to date. Future research should clarify whether these instruments or their wales/items exhibit good content validity and other measurement properties for use in brain tumor patients.Neurolog

Multi-parametric MR Imaging Biomarkers Associated to Clinical Outcomes in Gliomas: A Systematic Review

[EN] Purpose: To systematically review evidence regarding the association of multi-parametric biomarkers with clinical outcomes and their capacity to explain relevant subcompartments of gliomas. Materials and Methods: Scopus database was searched for original journal papers from January 1st, 2007 to February 20th , 2017 according to PRISMA. Four hundred forty-nine abstracts of papers were reviewed and scored independently by two out of six authors. Based on those papers we analyzed associations between biomarkers, subcompartments within the tumor lesion, and clinical outcomes. From all the articles analyzed, the twenty-seven papers with the highest scores were highlighted to represent the evidence about MR imaging biomarkers associated with clinical outcomes. Similarly, eighteen studies defining subcompartments within the tumor region were also highlighted to represent the evidence of MR imaging biomarkers. Their reports were critically appraised according to the QUADAS-2 criteria. Results: It has been demonstrated that multi-parametric biomarkers are prepared for surrogating diagnosis, grading, segmentation, overall survival, progression-free survival, recurrence, molecular profiling and response to treatment in gliomas. Quantifications and radiomics features obtained from morphological exams (T1, T2, FLAIR, T1c), PWI (including DSC and DCE), diffusion (DWI, DTI) and chemical shift imaging (CSI) are the preferred MR biomarkers associated to clinical outcomes. Subcompartments relative to the peritumoral region, invasion, infiltration, proliferation, mass effect and pseudo flush, relapse compartments, gross tumor volumes, and high-risk regions have been defined to characterize the heterogeneity. For the majority of pairwise cooccurrences, we found no evidence to assert that observed co-occurrences were significantly different from their expected co-occurrences (Binomial test with False Discovery Rate correction, alpha=0.05). The co-occurrence among terms in the studied papers was found to be driven by their individual prevalence and trends in the literature. Conclusion: Combinations of MR imaging biomarkers from morphological, PWI, DWI and CSI exams have demonstrated their capability to predict clinical outcomes in different management moments of gliomas. Whereas morphologic-derived compartments have been mostly studied during the last ten years, new multi-parametric MRI approaches have also been proposed to discover specific subcompartments of the tumors. MR biomarkers from those subcompartments show the local behavior within the heterogeneous tumor and may quantify the prognosis and response to treatment of gliomas.This work was supported by the Spanish Ministry for Investigation, Development and Innovation project with identification number DPI2016-80054-R.Oltra-Sastre, M.; Fuster García, E.; Juan -Albarracín, J.; Sáez Silvestre, C.; Perez-Girbes, A.; Sanz-Requena, R.; Revert-Ventura, A.... (2019). Multi-parametric MR Imaging Biomarkers Associated to Clinical Outcomes in Gliomas: A Systematic Review. Current Medical Imaging Reviews. 15(10):933-947. https://doi.org/10.2174/1573405615666190109100503S9339471510Louis D.N.; Perry A.; Reifenberger G.; The 2016 world health organization classification of tumors of the central nervous system: a summary. Acta Neuropathol 2016,131(6),803-820Ostrom Q.T.; Gittleman H.; Fulop J.; CBTRUS statistical report: primary brain and central nervous system tumors diagnosed in the United States in 2008-2012. Neuro-oncol 2015,17(Suppl. 4),iv1-iv62Yachida S.; Jones S.; Bozic I.; Distant metastasis occurs late during the genetic evolution of pancreatic cancer. Nature 2010,467(7319),1114-1117Gerlinger M.; Rowan A.J.; Horswell S.; Intratumor heterogeneity and branched evolution revealed by multiregion sequencing. N Engl J Med 2012,366(10),883-892Sottoriva A.; Spiteri I.; Piccirillo S.G.M.; Intratumor heterogeneityin human glioblastoma reflects cancer evolutionary dynamics. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 2013,110(10),4009-4014Whiting P.F.; Rutjes A.W.; Westwood M.E.; QUADAS-2: a revised tool for the quality assessment of diagnostic accuracy studies. Ann Intern Med 2011,155(8),529-536Stupp R.; Mason W.P.; van den Bent M.J.; Radiotherapy plus concomitant and adjuvant temozolomide for glioblastoma. N Engl J Med 2005,352(10),987-996Ponte K.F.; Berro D.H.; Collet S.; In vivo relationship between hypoxia and angiogenesis in human glioblastoma: a multimodal imaging study. J Nucl Med 2017,58(10),1574-1579Pope W.B.; Kim H.J.; Huo J.; Recurrent glioblastoma multiforme: ADC histogram analysis predicts response to bevacizumab treatment. Radiology 2009,252(1),182-189Mörén L.; Bergenheim A.T.; Ghasimi S.; Brännström T.; Johansson M.; Antti H.; Metabolomic screening of tumor tissue and serum in glioma patients reveals diagnostic and prognostic information. Metabolites 2015,5(3),502-520Prager A.J.; Martinez N.; Beal K.; Omuro A.; Zhang Z.; Young R.J.; Diffusion and perfusion MRI to differentiate treatment-related changes including pseudoprogression from recurrent tumors in high-grade gliomas with histopathologic evidence. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol 2015,36(5),877-885Kickingereder P.; Burth S.; Wick A.; Radiomic profiling of glioblastoma: identifying an imaging predictor of patient survival with improved performance over established clinical and radiologic risk models. Radiology 2016,280(3),880-889Yoo R-E.; Choi S.H.; Cho H.R.; Tumor blood flow from arterial spin labeling perfusion MRI: a key parameter in distinguishing high-grade gliomas from primary cerebral lymphomas, and in predicting genetic biomarkers in high-grade gliomas. J Magn Reson Imaging 2013,38(4),852-860Liberman G.; Louzoun Y.; Aizenstein O.; Automatic multi-modal MR tissue classification for the assessment of response to bevacizumab in patients with glioblastoma. Eur J Radiol 2013,82(2),e87-e94Ramadan S.; Andronesi O.C.; Stanwell P.; Lin A.P.; Sorensen A.G.; Mountford C.E.; Use of in vivo two-dimensional MR spectroscopy to compare the biochemistry of the human brain to that of glioblastoma. Radiology 2011,259(2),540-549Xintao H.; Wong K.K.; Young G.S.; Guo L.; Wong S.T.; Support vector machine multi-parametric MRI identification of pseudoprogression from tumor recurrence in patients with resected glioblastoma. J Magn Reson Imaging 2011,33(2),296Ingrisch M.; Schneider M.J.; Nörenberg D.; Radiomic Analysis reveals prognostic information in T1-weighted baseline magnetic resonance imaging in patients with glioblastoma. Invest Radiol 2017,52(6),360-366Ulyte A.; Katsaros V.K.; Liouta E.; Prognostic value of preoperative dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI perfusion parameters for high-grade glioma patients. Neuroradiology 2016,58(12),1197-1208O’Neill A.F.; Qin L.; Wen P.Y.; de Groot J.F.; Van den Abbeele A.D.; Yap J.T.; Demonstration of DCE-MRI as an early pharmacodynamic biomarker of response to VEGF Trap in glioblastoma. J Neurooncol 2016,130(3),495-503Kickingereder P.; Bonekamp D.; Nowosielski M.; Radiogenomics of glioblastoma: machine learning-based classification of molecular characteristics by using multiparametric and multiregional mr imaging features. Radiology 2016,281(3),907-918Roberto S-R.; Antonio R-V.; Luis M-B.; Angel A-B.; Gracián G-M.; Quantitative mr perfusion parameters related to survival time in high-grade gliomas. European Radiology 2013,23(12),3456-3465Jain R.; Poisson L.; Narang J.; Genomic mapping and survival prediction in glioblastoma: molecular subclassification strengthened by hemodynamic imaging biomarkers. Radiology 2013,267(1),212-220Fathi K.A.; Mohseni M.; Rezaei S.; Bakhshandehpour G.; Saligheh R.H.; Multi-parametric (ADC/PWI/T2-W) image fusion approach for accurate semi-automatic segmentation of tumorous regions in glioblastoma multiforme. MAGMA 2015,28(1),13-22Caulo M.; Panara V.; Tortora D.; Data-driven grading of brain gliomas: a multiparametric MR imaging study. Radiology 2014,272(2),494-503Alexiou G.A.; Zikou A.; Tsiouris S.; Comparison of diffusion tensor, dynamic susceptibility contrast MRI and (99m)Tc-Tetrofosmin brain SPECT for the detection of recurrent high-grade glioma. Magn Reson Imaging 2014,32(7),854-859Van Cauter S.; De Keyzer F.; Sima D.M.; Integrating diffusion kurtosis imaging, dynamic susceptibility-weighted contrast-enhanced MRI, and short echo time chemical shift imaging for grading gliomas. Neuro-oncol 2014,16(7),1010-1021Seeger A.; Braun C.; Skardelly M.; Comparison of three different MR perfusion techniques and MR spectroscopy for multiparametric assessment in distinguishing recurrent high-grade gliomas from stable disease. Acad Radiol 2013,20(12),1557-1565Chawalparit O.; Sangruchi T.; Witthiwej T.; Diagnostic performance of advanced mri in differentiating high-grade from low-grade gliomas in a setting of routine service. J Med Assoc Thai 2013,96(10),1365-1373Li Y.; Lupo J.M.; Parvataneni R.; Survival analysis in patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma using pre- and postradiotherapy MR spectroscopic imaging. Neuro-oncol 2013,15(5),607-617Shankar J.J.S.; Woulfe J.; Silva V.D.; Nguyen T.B.; Evaluation of perfusion CT in grading and prognostication of high-grade gliomas at diagnosis: a pilot study. AJR Am J Roentgenol 2013,200(5)Zinn P.O.; Mahajan B.; Sathyan P.; Radiogenomic mapping of edema/cellular invasion MRI-phenotypes in glioblastoma multiforme. PLoS One 2011,6(10)Matsusue E.; Fink J.R.; Rockhill J.K.; Ogawa T.; Maravilla K.R.; Distinction between glioma progression and post-radiation change by combined physiologic MR imaging. Neuroradiology 2010,52(4),297-306Juan-Albarracín J.; Fuster-Garcia E.; Manjón J.V.; Automated glioblastoma segmentation based on a multiparametric structured unsupervised classification. PLoS One 2015,10(5)Itakura H.; Achrol A.S.; Mitchell L.A.; Magnetic resonance image features identify glioblastoma phenotypic subtypes with distinct molecular pathway activities. Sci Transl Med 2015,7(303)Ion-Margineanu A.; Van Cauter S.; Sima D.M.; Tumour relapse prediction using multiparametric MR data recorded during follow-up of GBM patients. BioMed Res Int 2015,2015Durst C.R.; Raghavan P.; Shaffrey M.E.; Multimodal MR imaging model to predict tumor infiltration in patients with gliomas. Neuroradiology 2014,56(2),107-115Yoon J.H.; Kim J.H.; Kang W.J.; Grading of cerebral glioma with multi-parametric MR Imaging and 18F-FDG-PET: concordance and accuracy. European Radiol 2014,24(2),380-389Demerath T.; Simon-Gabriel C.P.; Kellner E.; Mesoscopic imaging of glioblastomas: are diffusion, perfusion and spectroscopic measures influenced by the radiogenetic phenotype? Neuroradiol J 2017,30(1),36-47Qin L.; Li X.; Stroiney A.; Advanced MRI assessment to predict benefit of anti-programmed cell death 1 protein immunotherapy response in patients with recurrent glioblastoma. Neuroradiology 2017,59(2),135-145Boult J.K.R.; Borri M.; Jury A.; Investigating intracranial tumour growth patterns with multiparametric MRI incorporating Gd-DTPA and USPIO-enhanced imaging. NMR Biomed 2016,29(11),1608-1617Server A.; Kulle B.; Gadmar Ø.B.; Josefsen R.; Kumar T.; Nakstad P.H.; Measurements of diagnostic examination performance using quantitative apparent diffusion coefficient and proton MR spectroscopic imaging in the preoperative evaluation of tumor grade in cerebral gliomas. Eur J Radiol 2011,80(2),462-470Chang P.D.; Chow D.S.; Yang P.H.; Filippi C.G.; Lignelli A.; Predicting glioblastoma recurrence by early changes in the apparent diffusion coefficient value and signal intensity on FLAIR images. AJR Am J Roentgenol 2017,208(1),57-65Yi C.; Shangjie R.; Volume of high-risk intratumoralsubregions at multi-parametric MR imaging predicts overall survival and complements molecular analysis of glioblastoma. Eur Radiol 2017,27,3583-3592Khalifa J.; Tensaouti F.; Chaltiel L.; Identification of a candidate biomarker from perfusion MRI to anticipate glioblastoma progression after chemoradiation. Eur Radiol 2016,26(11),4194-4203Prateek P.; Jay P.; Partovi S.; Madabhushi A.; Tiwari P.; Radiomic features from the peritumoral brain parenchyma on treatment-naïve multi-parametric MR imaging predict long versus short-term survival in glioblastomamultiforme: preliminary findings. Eur Radiol 2017,27(10),4188-4197Lemasson B.; Chenevert T.L.; Lawrence T.S.; Impact of perfusion map analysis on early survival prediction accuracy in glioma patients. Transl Oncol 2013,6(6),766-774Inano R.; Oishi N.; Kunieda T.; Visualization of heterogeneity and regional grading of gliomas by multiple features using magnetic resonance-based clustered images. Sci Rep 2016,6,30344Delgado-Goñi T.; Ortega-Martorell S.; Ciezka M.; MRSI-based molecular imaging of therapy response to temozolomide in preclinical glioblastoma using source analysis. NMR Biomed 2016,29(6),732-743Cui Y.; Tha K.K.; Terasaka S.; Prognostic imaging biomarkers in glioblastoma: development and independent validation on the basis of multiregion and quantitative analysis of MR images. Radiology 2016,278(2),546-553Price S.J.; Young A.M.H.; Scotton W.J.; Multimodal MRI can identify perfusion and metabolic changes in the invasive margin of glioblastomas. J Magn Reson Imaging 2016,43(2),487-494Sauwen N.; Acou M.; Van Cauter S.; Comparison of unsupervised classification methods for brain tumor segmentation using multi-parametric MRI. Neuroimage Clin 2016,12,753-764Jena A.; Taneja S.; Gambhir A.; Glioma recurrence versus radiation necrosis: single-session multiparametric approach using simultaneous O-(2-18F-Fluoroethyl)-L-Tyrosine PET/MRI. Clin Nucl Med 2016,41(5),e228-e236Kim H.S.; Goh M.J.; Kim N.; Choi C.G.; Kim S.J.; Kim J.H.; Which combination of MR imaging modalities is best for predicting recurrent glioblastoma? Study of diagnostic accuracy and reproducibility. Radiology 2014,273(3),831-843Christoforidis G.A.; Yang M.; Abduljalil A.; “Tumoral pseudoblush” identified within gliomas at high-spatial-resolution ultrahigh-field-strength gradient-echo MR imaging corresponds to microvascularity at stereotactic biopsy. Radiology 2012,264(1),210-217Wang S.; Kim S.; Chawla S.; Differentiation between glioblastomas, solitary brain metastases, and primary cerebral lymphomas using diffusion tensor and dynamic susceptibility contrast-enhanced MR imaging. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol 2011,32(3),507-514Hanahan D.; Weinberg R.A.; Hallmarks of cancer: the next generation. Cell 2011,144(5),646-674Macdonald D.R.; Cascino T.L.; Schold S.C.; Cairncross J.G.; Response criteria for phase II studies of supratentorial malignant glioma. J Clin Oncol 1990,8(7),1277-1280Wen P.Y.; Macdonald D.R.; Reardon D.A.; Updated response assessment criteria for high-grade gliomas: response assessment in neuro-oncology working group. J Clin Oncol 2010,28(11),1963-1972Sorensen A.G.; Batchelor T.T.; Wen P.Y.; Zhang W-T.; Jain R.K.; Response criteria for glioma. Nat Clin Pract Oncol 2008,5(11),634-644Rosenkrantz A.B.; Friedman K.; Chandarana H.; Current status of hybrid PET/MRI in oncologic imaging. AJR Am J Roentgenol 2016,206(1),162-172Castiglioni I.; Gallivanone F.; Canevari C.; Hybrid PET/MRI for In vivo imaging of cancer: current clinical experiences and recent advances. Curr Med Imaging 2016,12,106Mainta I.C.; Perani D.; Delattre B.M.A.; FDG PET/MR imaging in major neurocognitive disorders. Curr Alzheimer Res 2017,14,186-197Marner L.; Henriksen O.M.; Lundemann M.; Larsen V.A.; Law I.; Clinical PET/MRI in neurooncology: opportunities and challenges from a single-institution perspective. Clin Transl Imaging 2017,5(2),135-149R: A language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria; 2015. Available from: https://www.R-project.org

A Phase Ib/II, open-label, multicenter study of INC280 (capmatinib) alone and in combination with buparlisib (BKM120) in adult patients with recurrent glioblastoma

Purpose: To estimate the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) and/or identify the recommended Phase II dose (RP2D) for combined INC280 and buparlisib in patients with recurrent glioblastoma with homozygous phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) deletion, mutation or protein loss. Methods: This multicenter, open-label, Phase Ib/II study included adult patients with glioblastoma with mesenchymal-epithelial transcription factor (c-Met) amplification. In Phase Ib, patients received INC280 as capsules or tablets in combination with buparlisib. In Phase II, patients received INC280 only. Response was assessed centrally using Response Assessment in Neuro-Oncology response criteria for high-grade gliomas. All adverse events (AEs) were recorded and graded. Results: 33 patients entered Phase Ib, 32 with altered PTEN. RP2D was not declared due to potential drug–drug interactions, which may have resulted in lack of efficacy; thus, Phase II, including 10 patients, was continued with INC280 monotherapy only. Best response was stable disease in 30% of patients. In the selected patient population, enrollment was halted due to limited activity with INC280 monotherapy. In Phase Ib, the most common treatment-related AEs were fatigue (36.4%), nausea (30.3%) and increased alanine aminotransferase (30.3%). MTD was identified at INC280 Tab 300 mg twice daily + buparlisib 80 mg once daily. In Phase II, the most common AEs were headache (40.0%), constipation (30.0%), fatigue (30.0%) and increased lipase (30.0%). Conclusion: The combination of INC280/buparlisib resulted in no clear activity in patients with recurrent PTEN-deficient glioblastoma. More stringent molecular selection strategies might produce better outcomes. Trial registration: NCT01870726

Imaging and diagnostic advances for intracranial meningiomas

The archetypal imaging characteristics of meningiomas are among the most stereotypic of all central nervous system (CNS) tumors. In the era of plain film and ventriculography, imaging was only performed if a mass was suspected, and their results were more suggestive than definitive. Following more than a century of technological development, we can now rely on imaging to non-Invasively diagnose meningioma with great confidence and precisely delineate the locations of these tumors relative to their surrounding structures to inform treatment planning. Asymptomatic meningiomas may be identified and their growth monitored over time; moreover, imaging routinely serves as an essential tool to survey tumor burden at various stages during the course of treatment, thereby providing guidance on their effectiveness or the need for further intervention. Modern radiological techniques are expanding the power of imaging from tumor detection and monitoring to include extraction of biologic information from advanced analysis of radiological parameters. These contemporary approaches have led to promising attempts to predict tumor grade and, in turn, contribute prognostic data. In this supplement article, we review important current and future aspects of imaging in the diagnosis and management of meningioma, including conventional and advanced imaging techniques using CT, MRI, and nuclear medicine

Advances in multidisciplinary therapy for meningiomas

Surgery has long been established as the first-line treatment for the majority of symptomatic and enlarging meningiomas, and evidence for its success is derived from retrospective case series. Despite surgical resection, a subset of meningiomas display aggressive behavior with early recurrences that are difficult to treat. The decision to radically resect meningiomas and involved structures is balanced against the risk for neurological injury in patients. Radiation therapy has largely been used as a complementary and safe therapeutic strategy in meningiomas with evidence primarily stemming from retrospective, single-Institution reports. Two of the first cooperative group studies (RTOG 0539 and EORTC 22042) evaluating the outcomes of adjuvant radiation therapy in higher-risk meningiomas have shown promising preliminary results. Historically, systemic therapy has resulted in disappointing results in meningiomas. However, several clinical trials are under way evaluating the efficacy of chemotherapies, such as trabectedin, and novel molecular agents targeting Smoothened, AKT1, and focal adhesion kinase in patients with recurrent meningiomas