%0 Journal Article
%T The long non-coding RNA OTX2-AS1 promotes tumor growth and predicts response to BCL-2 inhibition in medulloblastoma.
%A Qin N
%A Paisana E
%A Picard D
%A Leprivier G
%A Langini M
%A Custódia C
%A Cascão R
%A Conrad C
%A Peitzsch M
%A Stefanski A
%A Stühler K
%A Fischer U
%A Faria CC
%A Dietrich S
%A Reifenberger G
%A Remke M
%J J Neurooncol
%V 165
%N 2
%D 2023 Nov
%M 37976029
%F 4.506
%R 10.1007/s11060-023-04508-y
%X <B>OBJECTIVE: </B>Primary brain tumors are a leading cause of cancer-related death in children, and medulloblastoma is the most common malignant pediatric brain tumor. The current molecular characterization of medulloblastoma is mainly based on protein-coding genes, while little is known about the involvement of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs). This study aimed to elucidate the role of the lncRNA OTX2-AS1 in medulloblastoma.<BR><B>METHODS: </B>Analyses of DNA copy number alterations, methylation profiles, and gene expression data were used to characterize molecular alterations of OTX2-AS1 in medulloblastoma tissue samples. In vitro analyses of medulloblastoma cell models and orthotopic in vivo experiments were carried out for functional characterization of OTX2-AS1. High-throughput drug screening was employed to identify pharmacological inhibitors, while proteomics and metabolomics analyses were performed to address potential mechanisms of drug action.<BR><B>RESULTS: </B>We detected amplification and consecutive overexpression of OTX2 and OTX2-AS1 in a subset of medulloblastomas. In addition, OTX2-AS1 promoter methylation was linked to OTX2-AS1 expression. OTX2-AS1 knockout reduced medulloblastoma cell viability and cell migration in vitro and prolonged survival in the D283 orthotopic medulloblastoma mouse xenograft model. Pharmacological inhibition of BCL-2 suppressed the growth of OTX2-AS1 overexpressing medulloblastoma cells in vitro.<BR><B>CONCLUSIONS: </B>Our study revealed a pro-tumorigenic role of OTX2-AS1 in medulloblastoma and identified BCL-2 inhibition as a potential therapeutic approach to target OTX2-AS1 overexpressing medulloblastoma cells.