Of the six glioma cell lines represented in the NCI60 panel against which coibamide A was tested, four (SF-295, U251, SF-539, SNB-19) are characterized as being variant in both PTEN and p53 pathways, whereas two (SNB-75, SF-268) have variations in the p53 pathway, but normally functioning PTEN. This evidence concerns the gene TP53 and central nervous system cancer.