Chemically Induced Brain Cancer in Sprague-Dawley Rats: Changed Lipidomics Mimics the Human Conditions

Abstract

Malignant gliomas are one of the most treatment-refractory cancers. Development of resistance to chemo- and radiotherapies contributes to these tumors’ aggressive phenotypes. Elevated lipid levels in gliomas have been reported for the last 50 years. However, the molecular mechanisms of how tumor tissues obtain lipids and utilize them are not well understood.In our study, 48.6% of phosphatidylcholines were significantly changed during an early stage of brain cancer in females, and 66.2% in males. As for lysophosphatidylcholines 57.1% metabolites were significantly changed in female, and 64.3% in male rats. We observed the most interesting results in the group of sphingomyelins, where 85.8% metabolites were significantly elevated during brain cancer. According to VIP projection, the most important metabolites were: PC ae C40:3, PC ae C38:1, PC ae C30:1, PC ae C38:3, PC ae C44:3, PC aa C40:2, PC aa C42:0, PC ae C30:2, SM C20:2, PC aa C42:1 in females, and PC ae C38:1, PC ae C40:3, PC ae C30:1, PC ae C42:1, SM C20:2, PC aa C34:4, PC ae C38:4, PC aa C32:2, PC aa C38:5, lysoPC a C14:0. The identification of lipid biomarkers during the early stage of cancer could improve patient prognosis.