Neuroblastoma: Emerging trends in pathogenesis, diagnosis, and therapeutic targets

Santharam S Katta; Veerababu Nagati; Atreya S V Paturi; Swati P Murakonda; Ajay B Murakonda; Manoj K Pandey; Subash C Gupta; Anil K Pasupulati; Kishore B Challagundla

doi:10.1016/j.jconrel.2023.04.001

Neuroblastoma: Emerging trends in pathogenesis, diagnosis, and therapeutic targets

J Control Release. 2023 May:357:444-459. doi: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2023.04.001. Epub 2023 Apr 19.

Authors

Santharam S Katta¹, Veerababu Nagati², Atreya S V Paturi², Swati P Murakonda³, Ajay B Murakonda⁴, Manoj K Pandey⁵, Subash C Gupta⁶, Anil K Pasupulati⁷, Kishore B Challagundla⁸

Affiliations

¹ REVA University, Rukmini Knowledge Park, Kattigenahalli Yelahanka, Bangalore, Karnataka 560064, India.
² Department of Biochemistry, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad, Telangana 500046, India.
³ Sri Rajiv Gandhi College of Dental Science & Hospital, Bengaluru, Karnataka, 560032, India.
⁴ Sree Sai Dental College & Research Institute, Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh 532001, India.
⁵ Department of Biomedical Sciences, Cooper Medical School of Rowan University, Camden, NJ 08103, USA.
⁶ Department of Biochemistry, Institute of Science, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221005, India; Department of Biochemistry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Guwahati, Assam 781101, India.
⁷ Department of Biochemistry, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad, Telangana 500046, India. Electronic address: anilkumar@uohyd.ac.in.
⁸ Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology & The Fred and Pamela Buffett Cancer Center; University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198, USA; The Child Health Research Institute, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198, USA. Electronic address: kishore.challagundla@unmc.edu.

PMID: 37023798
DOI: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2023.04.001

Abstract

Neuroblastoma (NB) accounts for about 13% of all pediatric cancer mortality and is the leading cause of pediatric cancer death for children aged 1 to 5 years. NB, a developmental malignancy of neural ganglia, originates from neural crest-derived cells, which undergo a defective sympathetic neuronal differentiation due to genomic and epigenetic aberrations. NB is a complex disease with remarkable biological and genetic variation and clinical heterogeneity, such as spontaneous regression, treatment resistance, and poor survival rates. Depending on its severity, NB is categorized as high-risk, intermediate-risk, and low-risk., whereas high-risk NB accounts for a high infant mortality rate. Several studies revealed that NB cells suppress immune cell activity through diverse signaling pathways, including exosome-based signaling pathways. Exosome signaling has been shown to modulate gene expression in the target immune cells and attenuate the signaling events through non-coding RNAs. Since high-risk NB is characterized by a low survival rate and high clinical heterogeneity with current intensive therapies, it is crucial to unravel the molecular events of pathogenesis and develop novel therapeutic targets in high-risk, relapsed, or recurrent tumors in NB to improve patient survival. This article discusses etiology, pathophysiology, risk assessment, molecular cytogenetics, and the contribution of extracellular vesicles, non-coding RNAs, and cancer stem cells in the tumorigenesis of NB. We also detail the latest developments in NB immunotherapy and nanoparticle-mediated drug delivery treatment options.

Keywords: Chemotherapy; Extracellular vesicles; Immunotherapy; Nanoparticles; Neuroblastoma; Non-coding RNAs.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Child
Humans
Immunotherapy
Neuroblastoma* / diagnosis
Neuroblastoma* / drug therapy
Neuroblastoma* / genetics
Signal Transduction