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- Posted Thursday May 14, 2015
New release of Glioblastoma Atlas sheds light on deadly disease
Major updates to the Ivy Glioblastoma Atlas Project provide researchers with valuable tools to find cures for aggressive brain cancers
SEATTLE, Wash. - May 14, 2015 - Robust new data
added to the Ivy Glioblastoma Atlas Project (Ivy GAP) changes the
scope and impact of this publicly available resource for
researchers and clinicians searching for treatments for this most
deadly and aggressive of brain cancers, glioblastoma
multiforme.
Led by researchers at the Allen Institute for Brain Science and
Swedish Neuroscience Institute and funded with a grant from The Ben
& Catherine Ivy Foundation, Ivy GAP includes detailed
information about genes expressed in the various anatomical regions
of glioblastoma and important data about the presumed initial
cancer stem cells that lead to tumor formation.
"This atlas has been a long-term partnership to provide a public
resource for researchers worldwide to mine the data and identify
trends that may lead to further studies and treatments," says Allan
Jones, Ph.D., CEO of the Allen Institute.
"Our ultimate goal is to change the outcome for patients with this
devastating disease," says Ralph Puchalski, Ph.D., scientist at the
Allen Institute for Brain Science and co-Principal Investigator on
the project. "The Ivy Glioblastoma Atlas Project is an
unprecedented platform for exploring the anatomic and genetic basis
of glioblastoma at the cellular and molecular levels. The atlas is
an anatomic tour de force that is sure to provide vital information
into how such tumors grow and invade healthy brain tissue."
"The need for projects like the Ivy Glioblastoma Atlas Project is
urgent," said Catherine Ivy, President of The Ben & Catherine
Ivy Foundation. "If we can give our medical leaders better research
tools, we can move closer to our ultimate goal of curing
glioblastoma."
"The Ivy Glioblastoma Project will advance the field by allowing
investigators around the world to access massive amounts of tumor
genomic information and patient clinical information," says Charles
Cobbs, M.D., director of The Ben and Catherine Ivy Center for
Advanced Brain Tumor Treatment at the Swedish Neuroscience
Institute. "The new knowledge that will result from universal
access to this amazing brain tumor atlas, originally envisioned by
Dr. Greg Foltz at Swedish, will lead to advances in our
understanding of the biology of glioblastoma, and may result in
novel approaches to improve treatment and survival."
"Extensive studies of glioblastoma multiforme, the most aggressive
brain cancer, have as a whole yielded limited treatment options and
no cure," says Nameeta Shah, Ph.D., research scientist at The Ben
and Catherine Ivy Center for Advanced Brain Tumor Treatment at the
Swedish Neuroscience Institute and co-Principal Investigator on the
project. "The Ivy Glioblastoma Atlas Project offers for the first
time data for glioblastoma multiforme dissected by its distinct
characteristic cell populations. This atlas will allow the
worldwide research community to tackle this disease using a
holistic approach, to understand its parts to put together a
whole."
In 2006, Greg Foltz, M.D., approached the Allen Institute for
Brain Science to create an openly available atlas of glioblastoma
to accelerate the pace of research. The Allen Institute
collaborated with The Ben and Catherine Ivy Center for Advanced
Brain Tumor Treatment at the Swedish Neuroscience Institute, which
Foltz founded with a grant from The Ben & Catherine Ivy
Foundation, to create and share the atlas. In a tragic turn of
events, Foltz died of pancreatic cancer shortly after his fiftieth
birthday in 2013.
"Dr. Greg Foltz had a razor sharp focus in life: to cure brain
cancer," says Shah. "Even during his own struggle with pancreatic
cancer, he taught by example and made sure the scientists at the
Ivy Center never lost focus and continued their efforts. The Ivy
Glioblastoma Atlas Project is dedicated to him and will be his
legacy."
The Phoenix-based Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen)
also applied its expertise in laser capture microdissection and RNA
sequencing to the experimental design of Ivy GAP. TGen connected
the Allen Institute for Brain Science with other neurosurgical
groups for specimen accrual, as well as participated in
recommending and prioritizing genes, focusing especially on those
related to GBM invasion: the disease's propensity to stealthily
move into adjoining areas of the brain.
"Understanding GBM invasion and heterogeneity allows us to look at
how brain tumors adapt and change as they grow, helping identify
the many enemies we are fighting-and treating them simultaneously,"
said Dr. Michael Berens, TGen Deputy Director for Research
Resources, head of TGen's Glioma Research Lab, and a member of the
Ivy GAP panel of domain experts.
Other collaborators on the Ivy GAP project include:
Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati,
Ohio
Institute for Systems Biology, Seattle, Wash.
Swedish Neuroscience Institute, Seattle, Wash.
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Wash.
Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio
University of Washington, Seattle, Wash.
NN Blokhin Russian Oncology Center, Moscow
Virginia Mason Medical Center, Seattle, Wash.
Radia Inc., PS, Lynwood, Wash.
White Marsh Forests, Inc., Seattle, Wash.
CellNetix, Seattle, Wash.
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About the Allen Institute
The Allen Institute for Brain Science (alleninstitute.org) is part of
the Allen Institute, an independent, 501(c)(3) nonprofit medical
research organization and is dedicated to accelerating the
understanding of how the human brain works in health and disease.
Using a big science approach, the Allen Institute generates useful
public resources used by researchers and organizations around the
globe, drives technological and analytical advances, and discovers
fundamental brain properties through integration of experiments,
modeling and theory. Launched in 2003 with a seed contribution from
founder and philanthropist Paul G. Allen, the Allen Institute is
supported by a diversity of government, foundation and private
funds to enable its projects. Given the Institute's achievements,
Mr. Allen committed an additional $300 million in 2012 for the
first four years of a ten-year plan to further propel and expand
the Institute's scientific programs, bringing his total commitment
to date to $500 million. The Allen Institute's data and tools are
publicly available online at brain-map.org.
About The Ben & Catherine Ivy
Foundation
The Ivy Foundation is the nation's largest privately funded
foundation with a mission of improving survival and quality of life
for people diagnosed with a brain tumor. The Ivy Foundation's
approach is to fund Patient Focused Research (PFR) in gliomas to
improve diagnostics and treatments for patients. In its inception
year, 2005, the Ivy Foundation supported $10 million in research,
which embodied the concept of Patient-Focused Research.
Patient-Focused Research (PFR) keeps the patient and relevant
clinical issues at the center of every research project. More
information about the Ivy Foundation can be found at IvyFoundation.org, IvyFoundation.wordpress.com,
facebook.com/IvyFoundation,
or @IvyFoundation.
About Swedish
Founded in 1910, Swedish is the largest non-profit health provider
in the Greater Seattle area. It is comprised of five hospital
campuses (First Hill, Cherry Hill, Ballard, Edmonds and Issaquah);
ambulatory care centers in Redmond and Mill Creek; and Swedish
Medical Group, a network of more than 100 primary-care and
specialty clinics located throughout the Greater Puget Sound area.
In addition to general medical and surgical care including
robotic-assisted surgery, Swedish is known as a regional referral
center, providing specialized treatment in areas such as
cardiovascular care, cancer care, neuroscience, orthopedics,
high-risk obstetrics, pediatric specialties, organ transplantation
and clinical research. In 2013, Swedish provided nearly $143
million in community benefit in Western Washington. For more
information, visit swedish.org, facebook.com/swedishmedicalcenter,
or twitter.com/swedish.
About TGen
Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) is a Phoenix,
Arizona-based non-profit organization dedicated to conducting
groundbreaking research with life changing results. TGen is focused
on helping patients with cancer, neurological disorders and
diabetes, through cutting edge translational research (the process
of rapidly moving research towards patient benefit). TGen
physicians and scientists work to unravel the genetic components of
both common and rare complex diseases in adults and children.
Working with collaborators in the scientific and medical
communities literally worldwide, TGen makes a substantial
contribution to help our patients through efficiency and
effectiveness of the translational process. For more information,
visit:www.tgen.org.
Media Contacts:
Rob Piercy, Sr. Media Relations Specialist
206.548.8486 | [email protected]
Steve Yozwiak
TGen Senior Science Writer
602-343-8704
[email protected]