Chemokines and glioma: invasion and more

Abstract

Increasing pieces of evidence indicate that the chemokine system influences several aspects of brain physiology and pathology. A deregulated chemokine expression pattern is observed during neurological diseases, including multiple sclerosis and brain tumor. Gliomas are the most common primary tumors affecting human central nervous system (CNS). Chemokines expressed by stromal cells or endogenously produced by glioma cells may influence tumor cell migration, invasion, proliferation, angiogenesis and immune cell infiltration in the tumor mass. Herein we focus on chemokines and chemokine receptors expressed by glioma cells and their role in the regulation of glioma cell functional behaviour, including its ability to attract immune cells.