Targeting Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1α in a New Orthotopic Model of Glioblastoma Recapitulating the Hypoxic Tumor Microenvironment

Tissue hypoxia and necrosis represent pathophysiologic and histologic hallmarks of glioblastoma (GBM). Although hypoxia inducible factor 1 (HIF-1) plays crucial roles in the malignant phenotypes of GBM, developing HIF-1-targeted agents has been hampered by the lack of a suitable preclinical model that recapitulates the complex biology of clinical GBM. We present a new GBM model, MGG123, which was established from a recurrent human GBM. Orthotopic xenografting of stem-like MGG123 cells reproducibly generated lethal tumors that were characterized by foci of palisading necrosis, hypervascularity, and robust stem cell marker expression. Perinecrotic neoplastic cells distinctively express HIF-1 and are proliferative in both xenografts and the patient tissue. The xenografts contain scattered hypoxic foci that were consistently greater than 50 m distant from blood vessels, indicating intratumoral heterogeneity of oxygenation. Hypoxia enhanced HIF-1 expression in cultured MGG123 cells, which was abrogated by the HIF-1 inhibitors digoxin or ouabain. In vivo, treatment of orthotopic MGG123 xenografts with digoxin decreased HIF-1 expression, vascular endothelial growth factor mRNA levels, and CD34-positive vasculature within the tumors, and extended survival of mice bearing the aggressive MGG123 GBM. This preclinical tumor model faithfully recapitulates the GBM-relevant hypoxic microenvironment and stemness and is a suitable platform for studying disease biology and developing hypoxia-targeted agents.