Germline and Somatic Microsatellite Genotypes in Pediatric Brain Tumors

Microsatellites are repeating units of base pairs found in DNA and over 600,000 microsatellites exist in the human genome. The location of these microsatellites can change and those changes could eventually lead to changes in gene expression by altering the way that RNA and proteins can attach to a gene. Past Genome-wide Associated Studies (GWAS) have ignored repetitive DNA such as microsatellites, however recent studies have shown a linkage between the length of microsatellites can contribute to the development of several cancers. Researchers will interrogate genomic information from the Pediatric Brain Tumor Atlas to identify the loci of pediatric brain cancer associated microsatellites. Understanding this connection could lead to new diagnostics and treatments for pediatric brain tumors.