Cancer Cachexia: Liver Identified as Active Driver of Body Wasting
👉
t1p.de/eh136
Up to half of all
#cancer patients experience
#cachexia – a severe syndrome marked by dramatic loss of muscle, fat, and even heart tissue. It is a major cause of therapy resistance, complications, and increased mortality.
🔬A new study led by researchers at
#HelmholtzMunich, in collaboration with University Hospital Heidelberg, the
@TU_Muenchen, and the
@DiabResearch, identifies the
#liver as a key contributor to this condition.
🕒The team discovered that a key liver clock gene, REV-ERBα, is silenced during cachexia, leading to the release of harmful hepatokines. These molecules trigger tissue-wasting processes in fat and muscle cells. Reactivating REV-ERBα in preclinical models reduced body wasting significantly.
💡The findings provide a comprehensive molecular dataset and may open new avenues for diagnosis and therapeutic development.
💬“For the first time, we were able to show that the liver is not merely a passive responder to cachexia, but actively contributes to the progression of the disease. Our findings open up new possibilities to better diagnose the syndrome and explore therapeutic interventions.”
– Dr. Mauricio Berriel Diaz
💬“These results clearly demonstrate the importance of systemic organ interactions in the progression of cancer.”
– Prof. Stephan Herzig
@Dorie00 @FiskerSchmidt @BerrielDiaz
#CancerResearch #LiverFunction #BiomedicalResearch
ALT Researchers have identified a previously overlooked driver of cachexia: the liver.