PI: Joseph Scafidi, DO – Children’s Research Institute, Washington, DC
Grant duration, Aug. 2011 – Sept. 2013, review is update on progress
The brain of children is subject to rapid growth and development. White matter is the part of the brain that is vital for communication and processing of information. White matter comprises nearly half of the human brain, and its growth and development occurs specifically after birth and continues throughout childhood. During this critical period of white matter maturation, it is vulnerable to drugs or other agents that affect its proliferation and growth and can result in injury. Injuries to the white matter lead to life-long cognitive and sensori-motor delays.
Children diagnosed with brain tumors are treated with combination therapies, which often include chemotherapy, radiation and specific targeted biological therapeutic agents, which are aimed at arresting tumor growth. The same pathways involved in uncontrolled tumor growth are part of complex mechanisms imperative for normal white matter growth and maturation. Using a multidisciplinary approach, the Scafidi laboratory is studying how these specific targeted biological agents affect normal white matter development at different developmental ages. Specifically, their studies are focused on the cellular, biochemical and behavioral effects these agents have on the developing brain and whether its effects are developmentally age specific. Understanding the effects these agents have on the developing brain will further our knowledge of normal brain development and the long-term consequences of these drugs. (Oral presentations were made at two international meeting regarding this research.)
Sincere appreciation to the Childhood Brain Tumor Foundation for its dedication to funding vital research initiatives!