Characterizing meningioma heterogeneity and microenvironment for new therapeutic opportunities

Meningiomas are common tumours that arise from the lining of the brain and spine. When they grow, they can cause symptoms such as weakness, speech problems, and seizures. For many patients, these tumours can simply be observed or cured with surgical removal if needed. However, a subset of approximately 20% of patients have aggressive tumours that grow back after surgery and radiation treatment. Unfortunately, surgery and radiation are the only current treatment options and they are often not effective for these patients; new options are urgently needed. Our group has demonstrated that meningiomas can be divided into four subgroups based on their genetic fingerprints, each with unique aggressiveness. Our early data suggests that each subgroup has different populations of immune cells, which have been shown to be an important contributor to meningioma growth in other studies. We therefore plan to gain a better understanding of the immune cells within meningiomas to identify new treatment strategies for patients. To do this, we will profile the gene expression of individual cells from several meningiomas per subgroup. This will allow us to comprehensively explore how each cell within the tumour behaves and interacts with other nearby cells in its environment, and interactions which are associated with tumour growth will be inhibited using available drugs in the lab to better understand their effect on biology. Advanced techniques such as spatial transcriptomics will also be used to understand how different regions within and around a particular tumour gives rise to the tumour itself and how it grows and invades the underlying brain tissue. In sum, our cutting edge approaches will lead to new treatment targets for meningioma which can then be tested in clinical trials.