Classic and desmoplastic medulloblastoma: Complete case reports and characterizations of two new cell lines

Medulloblastoma (MB) is the most common type of braintumor affecting children. These tumors are a significantcause of childhood mortality and morbidity, and moreeffective and less invasive treatment options are urgentlyrequired.To achieve these aims, it will be critical to developa more comprehensive understanding of the molecularpathogenesis of MB. At present, there are relatively fewwell-characterized MB cell lines available to the researchcommunity for the study of MB molecular and cellularbiology. Here we present the case reports of two childrendiagnosed with classic and desmoplastic MB, and describethe characteristics of two new MB cell lines derived fromthese individuals. A number of genes encoding componentsof the sonic hedgehog (SHH) and WNT pathwayswere up-regulated in the desmoplastic relative to the classicMB cell line consistent with aberrant activation of thesepathways in desmoplastic MB. These cell lines represent anadditional resource for the analysis of diverse aspects ofMB biology.