Mouse models of glioma

Gliomas are the most common primary tumour in the central nervous system in adults. The pathological hallmark of gliomas is their propensity for extensive infiltration into the surrounding brain parenchyma which results in tumour recurrence. Despite the use of optimal surgical removal and adjuvant therapies the most aggressive of these tumours, glioblastoma multiforme, has a poor patient prognosis, with median survival of less than 15 months. In this review, we discuss mouse glioma models that have been utilised to advance our basic knowledge of the processes involved in gliomagenesis and their use in the testing of novel therapies and treatment regimens in the preclinical setting.