Bcl2-Expressing Quiescent Type B Neural Stem Cells in the Ventricular-Subventricular Zone Are Resistant to Concurrent Temozolomide/X-Irradiation

The ventricular-subventricular zone (V-SVZ) of the mammalian brain is a site of adult neurogenesis. Within the V-SVZ reside type B neural stem cells (NSCs) and type A neuroblasts. The V-SVZ is also a primary site for very aggressive glioblastoma (GBM). Standard-of-care therapy for GBM consists of safe maximum resection, concurrent temozolomide (TMZ), and X-irradiation (XRT), followed by adjuvant TMZ therapy. The question of how this therapy impacts neurogenesis is not well understood and is of fundamental importance as normal tissue tolerance is a limiting factor. Here, we studied the effects of concurrent TMZ/XRT followed by adjuvant TMZ on type B stem cells and type A neuroblasts of the V-SVZ in C57BL/6 mice. We found that chemoradiation induced an apoptotic response in type A neuroblasts, as marked by cleavage of Caspase-3, but not in NSCs, and that A cells within the V-SVZ were repopulated given sufficient recovery time. 53BP1 foci formation and resolution was used to assess the repair of DNA double-strand breaks. Remarkably, the repair was the same in type B and A cells. While Bax expression was the same for type A or B cells, antiapoptotic Bcl2 and Mcl1 expression was significantly greater in NSCs. Thus, the resistance of type B NSCs to TMZ/XRT appears to be due, in part, to high basal expression of antiapoptotic proteins compared with type A cells. This preclinical research, demonstrating that murine NSCs residing in the V-SVZ are tolerant of standard chemoradiation therapy, supports a dose escalation strategy for treatment of GBM. Stem Cells 2019