Performing comprehensive genomic analyses of brain cancers in both adults and children

We identified SMO and AKT1 mutations in meningiomas, leading to international clinical trials of SMO and AKT inhibitors in patients with these tumors. We also identified MYB-QKI rearrangements as pathognomonic of angiocentric gliomas in children, and showed that these rearrangements simultaneously act through at least three direct mechanisms to generate tumors—the most complex effects yet shown for an oncogenic rearrangement. We are also performing comprehensive small molecule, functional genomic, and epigenomic profiling to determine the effects of and vulnerabilities associated with genomic alterations across a range of brain tumors.