Ghent living biobank - Sarcoma (GLB-S)
Sarcoma is a rare type of cancer, diagnosed in adults and children. More than 70 different subtypes of sarcoma are identified all with mesenchymal or connective tissue origin. Sarcoma treatment usually includes surgery but often also radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Preclinical models are of utter importance to unravel the complexity of the pathology, to identify novel treatments and to find biomarkers. To enable model development, researchers from Ghent University Hospital and Ghent University (from the Consortium for Sarcome Research Ghent, 'ConSarGhent') initiated a living sarcoma biobank that currently includes cryopreserved tissue from around 200 sarcomas.
From a subset of the biobanked sarcomas we initiated cell cultures and orthotopic xenograft models. Currently (status March 2024) available cell cultures represent 11 distinct sarcoma subtypes and are being characterized using state-of-the-art techniques. Established xenograft models reflect the clinical behaviour of 3 distinct sarcoma subtypes and uniquely allow to investigate primary tumor growth, minimal residual disease and metastasis. The models are available for drug testing, biomarker discovery and biological understanding of disease.
Team
- Prof. dr. O. De Wever (MD, PhD)
- Prof. dr. G. Sys (MD, PhD)
- Dr. S. Fischer (MD)
- Dr. S. Gijsels (MD)
- Prof. Dr. L. Lapeire (MD, PhD)
- Prof. Dr. D. Creytens (MD, PhD)
- Dr. D. Dorleijn (MD, PhD)
- Ms. Goedele Ronse
Publications
References using the Sarcoma Biobank:
- Fischer, S., Creytens, D., Gijsels, S., Descamps, B., Lapeire, L., Hendrix, A., … De Wever, O. (2024). Generation of post-surgical minimal residual disease models to investigate metastasis in soft tissue sarcoma patient-derived orthotopic xenografts. STAR Protocols, 5(1), 102863. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xpro.2024.102863
- Fischer S, Creytens D, De Geyter S, et al. Post-operative minimal residual disease models to study metastatic relapse in soft-tissue sarcoma patient-derived xenografts. Clin Transl Med. 2023;13(6):e1290. doi:10.1002/ctm2.1290
- Peirsman A, Blondeel E et al. MISpheroID: a knowledgebase and transparency tool for minimum information in spheroid identity. Nat Methods. 2021;18(11):1294-1303. doi:10.1038/s41592-021-01291-4
- González-Muñoz, T et al. “Endoglin, a Novel Biomarker and Therapeutical Target to Prevent Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumor Growth and Metastasis.” Clinical cancer research : an official journal of the American Association for Cancer Research 2023:3744-3758. Doi:10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-22-2462
Acknowledgments
We would like to thank all helping hands for aiding with the recruitment of patients, assisting with the collection and cryopreservation of tumour material and establishment of cell cultures. In particular, we would like to thank all students that participated during their honours projects and master’s theses: Merlijn Vekeman - Anaïs Ongenaet - Alexander Ackerman - Laurens Boi - Eline Segers - Ruben Van Boxstael - Herlinde De Waele - Jens De Temmerman - Francesca Casteur
Funding
This work was supported by the Concerted Research Actions from Ghent University, CRIG, 'Stichting Tegen Kanker' and 'Kom Op Tegen Kanker'
Contact & Links
Contact persons:
- Prof. dr. Olivier De Wever (PhD)
- Prof. Dr. Gwen Sys (MD, PhD)
- Dr. Stefanie Gijsels (MD, PhD candidate)
Links for more info:
- webpage of the Consortium for Sarcoma Research Ghent (ConSaRGhent)
- website of the Lab for Experimental Cancer Research (LECR)