Animal Core (Core D)

SUMMARY: ANIMAL CORE (CORE D) Investigations into brain tumor biology and therapy are best carried out in orthotopic animal models that mimic the natural milieu of the tumor. The ability to reach meaningful conclusions from these in vivo studies is greatly enhanced when uniform, readily reproducible animal models are used. The purpose of the Brain SPORE Animal Core is to provide centralized and specialized animal modeling, thereby achieving uniformity and reproducibility that enables accurate comparisons between experiments, research groups, and projects in this Brain Cancer SPORE. To this end, the Core will: 1) Support specialized surgical methods to generate brain tumor models. A key component of many Brain SPORE studies is the intracranial mouse tumor model. Core D provides surgical expertise in guide screw placement and intracranial tumor implantation, as well as other specialized surgical techniques. 2) Support all animal strains and tumor cell lines. This includes immunocompromised mice and humanized mice for human glioma xenografts, immune competent mouse strains for murine xenografts, and genetically engineered mouse models. In addition to mouse and human glioma cell lines, Core D has over 40 patient derived glioma stem-like cell lines representing all glioma subtypes that are fully characterized with respect to gene expression, mutation profiles, and in vivo growth characteristics. 3) Support specialized treatment delivery methods. Core D can support complex drug delivery regimens including intracranial injection, intra-thecal injections, intravenous and intra-arterial injections, and oral gavage. 4) Support in vivo imaging and sample collection to assess therapeutic efficacy. Core D supports tumor bioluminescence imaging and MRI and will assist with tissue and blood collection. The combined expertise of the Animal Core personnel lends itself to productive collaboration with SPORE and non-SPORE investigators in developing new animal models and unique surgical methods for therapeutic delivery and data collection. These services are mission critical and one or more of these services are used by all Projects in this application.