Abstract
Excessive proliferation and high invasive ability are prime accused for the failure on current brain tumor therapy. Our previous study has shown that the recurrent brain tumors are frequently associated with higher content of tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs). This study aimed to explore the interaction between macrophage and brain tumor cell and delineate their role on brain tumor response to therapy. Initially, we measured the migration rate of a murine astrocytoma cell line, ALTS1C1. We found that the migration rate of ALTS1C1 could be increased if they were co-cultured with macrophages without direct cell contact. On the other hand, we were surprised to find that tumor cells were restrained within a spheroid like structure by macrophages when these two cells were cultured together. The macrophage-promoted tumor cell colonization also affect their response to the cytotoxicity of radiation.