Differential Analysis Of Gene Expression Between U-251 Glioma Cells And Glioma Stem Cells

Objective: To study whether the U-251 glioma cell line contains brain tumor stem cells and observe their proliferation and differentiation.To investigate the differentially expressed genes between glioma cells and glioma stem cells(GSCs), cDNA microarray was used to compare the gene expression profiles in glioma cells and GCSs.Metheods Glioma stem cell was isolated from U-251 human glioma cell line. Total RNA isolated from study group(GSCs) and control group(glioma cells) were reverse transcribed to the cRNA. The probes were then hybridized to the OHS-404 expression microarray. After washing, gene microarray was scanned for the X-ray signal and showed differences between two groups.Results Glioma stem cells have been successfully cultured. They formed neurospheres in suspension. The majorities of the cells expressed CD133 and Nestin, which were the markers for neural stem cells. 70 genes differentially expressed between GSCs and glioma cells were identified by cDNA microarray technique. Among 263 genes, 53 were shown up-regulated and 17 down-regulated.Conclusion There is a small population of glioma stem cells in U-251 human glioma cell line, which has the capacity for self-renewal, the potential to differentiation and proliferation. There are many changes about gene expression between GSCs and glioma cells. GDF-11 and FABP-7 may be tightly related to proliferation of glioma stem cells. Application of the cDNA microarray in the research of brain tumor stem cells can conveniently and quickly find out the different genes, and can select objective-gene to research deeply.