De rol van kankercellen in het humane cachexia syndroom gereproduceerd door middel van xenograft-naakte muismodellen.

Cachexia is a syndrome characterized by progressive weight loss with depletion of lean body mass and muscle, which occurs in the presence of underlying illness. It is reported in patients with several chronic diseases, including cancer. The prevalence of cachexia among patients affected by different diseases varies accordingly to the nature of the specific chronic illness. Cachexia syndrome directly accounts for the death of 20% of cancer patients. Selective skeletal muscle wasting is a main pathological feature exhibited in cancer, and reflects an imbalance between protein synthesis and catabolism. Several studies indicate four main pathways as responsible for skeletal muscle catabolism: the ubiquitinproteasome pathway (UPP), protease-mediated degradation, autophagocytosis and inflammation. To date each one of these pathways has been investigated but the mechanisms underlying cachexia onset are not yet fully understood. Our interest is to investigate the possible contribution of migrating tumor cells to cancer-induced cachexia. In particular, we will use xenograft models obtained by subcutaneous injection of different human tumor cells in nude mice as well as in vitro studies, to provide evidences for a novel mechanism by which cancer can induce muscle atrophy.

Trefwoorden:Migrating tumor cells, Inflammation, Cancer, Cachexia