Objective: To explore the molecular genesis of medulloblastomas with cDNA array.
Methods: Four samples of medulloblastomas and 1 sample of normal brain tissue were collected freshly. After total RNA extraction, the (32)P targeted cDNA probes were converted and then hybridized with Atlas Human Cancer Array 1.2. The gene expression profiles were acquired through autoradiography. The discrepancy between the tumor and the normal brain tissue was analyzed with Atlas Image 1.01a.
Results: In comparison with the genes in the normal brain tissue, 6 down-regulated and 35 up-regulated genes in the medulloblastomas were revealed by means of the microarrays and autoradiography, and were verified by reverse transcriptase-PCR. The regulatory trends of most differential expression genes were in compliance with the biological features of this tumor.
Conclusion: Medulloblastomas are diseases involving multiple genes with some molecular pathological mechanisms different from the astrocytic gliomas. There are complex interrelationships between these genes, which need to be further researched.