Cancer Growth and Metastasis

Background: The impact of infiltrating macrophages on tumor progression in malignant gliomas has been studied extensively. However, there is a lack of animal models for studying the role of infiltrating macrophages in malignant gliomas.

Material and methods: The BT4C rat malignant glioma model was characterized by immunohistochemical analysis of inflammatory cell types associated with the tumors.

Results: BT4C malignant gliomas are highly vascularized tumors with an infiltrative behavior. BT4C gliomas demonstrated a high infiltration rate of macrophages. Particularly, a CD68/VEGFR-1 positive subtype of macrophages was detected at the edges of malignant gliomas. Also, CD133 positive cells were located mainly at the infiltrative edges of gliomas, whereas VEGFR-2 was highly expressed throughout the malignant glioma.

Conclusion: The immunocompetent BT4C rat malignant glioma model shows features similar to its human counterpart, which makes it a valuable model to study the impact of tumor associated macrophages in the pathology of malignant gliomas.