An overview of Twist1 in glioma progression and recurrence.

Glioma cells are characterized by high migration ability, resulting in the aggressive growth of the tumors and poor prognosis of patients. Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is one of the most important steps for tumor migration and metastasis and be elevated during glioma progression and recurrence. Twist1 is a basic helix-loop-helix transcription factor and a key transcription factor involved in the process of EMT. Twist1 is related to glioma mesenchymal change, invasion, heterogeneity, self-renewal of tumor stem cells, angiogenesis, etc., and may be used as a prognostic indicator and therapeutic target for glioma patients. This paper mainly reviews the structural characteristics, regulatory mechanisms, and apparent regulation of Twist1, as well as the roles of Twist1 during glioma progression and recurrence, providing new revelations for its use as a potential drug target and glioma treatment research.