Transformed stem cells have been isolated from some human cancers. We report that, unlike other brain cancers, the lethal glioblastoma multiforme contains neural precursors endowed with all of the critical features expected from neural stem cells. Similar, yet not identical, to their normal neural stem cell counterpart, these precursors emerge as unipotent (astroglial) in vivo and multipotent (neuronal-astroglial-oligodendroglial) in culture. More importantly, these cells can act as tumor-founding cells down to the clonal level and can establish tumors that closely resemble the main histologic, cytologic, and architectural features of the human disease, even when challenged through serial transplantation. Thus, cells possessing all of the characteristics expected from tumor neural stem cells seem to be involved in the growth and recurrence of adult human glioblastomas multiforme.

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ABSTRACTdays. This PC1 represents approximately 4,000 genes, the expression of which increased with neural commitment/differentiation. Furthermore, NS cells derived from adult brain and their differentiated cells were positioned along this PC axis further away from undifferentiated ESCs than embryonic stem-derived neural progenitors. We suggest that this PC1 defines a path to neural fate, providing a scale for the degree of commitment/differentiation. STEM CELLS 2006; 24:889 -895

The authors review the available evidence supporting the possible role of oxidative stress in cataract formation from an epidemiological and a clinical point of view. They discuss in more detail what is presently known about the molecular mechanisms of response of the mammalian lens to an oxidative insult and report unpublished data on gene modulation upon oxidative stress in a bovine lens model. Main research endeavors that seem to be a most promising source of new insights into the problem of age-related cataract formation are briefly discussed.