CD44 and glioma: Some intriguing aspects of the core gene set identified in this study include the well-studied glioma-related genes ANGPT2, CD44, SPP1, STAT3, PDGRFA, and TOP2A (all up-regulated), and BRSK1, DKK3, FGFR2, MAPK9, MEF2C, and PTEN (all down-regulated).