Rosiglitazone and imidapril alone or in combination alleviate muscle and adipose depletion in a murine cancer cachexia model

Tumour Biol. 2014 Jan;35(1):323-32. doi: 10.1007/s13277-013-1043-1.

Abstract

Rosiglitazone (RGZ) and imidapril improve cancer cachexia via different mechanisms. Therefore, we hypothesized that combination therapy of RGZ+imidapril would further attenuate cancer cachexia in vivo. After injection with colon-26 adenocarcinoma for 9 days, BALB/c mice were randomly divided into the following four treatment groups for 7 days (n = 8 per group): (1) placebo, (2) RGZ, (3) imidapril, and (4) RGZ+imidapril. Eight healthy control animals were also assessed. Body weight, tumor volume, gastrocnemius muscle and epididymal adipose mass, serum metabolic markers and cytokines, and the expression of nuclear factor-κB and two E3 ubiquitin ligases, atrogin-1 and MuRF-1, were measured. From days 14 to 16, all treatments significantly reduced tumor volume (P < 0.05). From days 10 to 16, improvements in the tumor-free body weight were observed in the RGZ and RGZ+imidapril groups. In addition, significant improvements in both gastrocnemius muscle and epididymal adipose mass were observed in all treatment groups (all, P < 0.05). Furthermore, all treatments significantly increased tumor necrosis factor alpha levels as compared to those observed in the healthy control animals (P < 0.001). Insulin levels significantly increased in the placebo group as compared to those in the healthy control group (P < 0.05), which were reduced in all the treatment groups (P < 0.05). Finally, whereas all treatments significantly reduced atrogin-1 levels as compared to the placebo group (all, P < 0.05), significant reductions in MuRF-1 levels were only observed in the RGZ and RGZ+imidapril groups (both, P < 0.05). Thus, all three treatments reduce tumor growth and alleviate cancer cachexia; however, synergistic effects of RGZ+imidapril combination therapy were not observed.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adipose Tissue / drug effects*
  • Adipose Tissue / pathology
  • Animals
  • Biomarkers / blood
  • Body Weight / drug effects
  • Cachexia / blood
  • Cachexia / drug therapy
  • Cachexia / etiology*
  • Cachexia / pathology*
  • Cytokines / blood
  • Disease Models, Animal
  • Drug Therapy, Combination
  • Gene Expression Regulation / drug effects
  • Imidazolidines / administration & dosage
  • Imidazolidines / pharmacology*
  • Inflammation Mediators / blood
  • Insulin / blood
  • Male
  • Mice
  • Muscle Proteins / genetics
  • Muscle Proteins / metabolism
  • Muscles / drug effects*
  • Muscles / pathology
  • Muscular Atrophy / drug therapy
  • Neoplasms / complications*
  • Neoplasms / pathology
  • Organ Size
  • Rosiglitazone
  • SKP Cullin F-Box Protein Ligases / genetics
  • SKP Cullin F-Box Protein Ligases / metabolism
  • Thiazolidinediones / administration & dosage
  • Thiazolidinediones / pharmacology*
  • Tripartite Motif Proteins
  • Tumor Burden
  • Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases / genetics
  • Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases / metabolism

Substances

  • Biomarkers
  • Cytokines
  • Imidazolidines
  • Inflammation Mediators
  • Insulin
  • Muscle Proteins
  • Thiazolidinediones
  • Tripartite Motif Proteins
  • Rosiglitazone
  • imidapril
  • Fbxo32 protein, mouse
  • SKP Cullin F-Box Protein Ligases
  • Trim63 protein, mouse
  • Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases