Open AccessCombined approach to counteract experimental cancer cachexia: eicosapentaenoic acid and training exercise
Author(s) -
Penna Fabio,
Busquets Silvia,
Pin Fabrizio,
Toledo Miriam,
Baccino Francesco M.,
López-Soriano Francisco J.,
Costelli Paola,
Argilés Josep M.
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
journal of cachexia, sarcopenia and muscle
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.803
H-Index - 66
eISSN - 2190-6009
pISSN - 2190-5991
DOI - 10.1007/s13539-011-0028-4
Subject(s) - cachexia , eicosapentaenoic acid , anorexia , skeletal muscle , medicine , cancer cachexia , weakness , cancer , muscle weakness , endocrinology , bioinformatics , polyunsaturated fatty acid , surgery , fatty acid , chemistry , biology , biochemistry
Background Cancer cachexia is a syndrome characterized by loss of skeletal muscle protein, depletion of lipid stores, anorexia, weakness, and perturbations of the hormonal homeostasis. Despite several therapeutic approaches described in the past, effective interventions countering cancer cachexia are still lacking. Methods The present work was aimed to verify the ability of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) to prevent the muscle depletion in Lewis lung carcinoma‐bearing mice and to test the ability of endurance exercise training to increase the EPA effect. Results EPA alone did not prevent the muscle loss induced by tumor growth while the combination with exercise induced a partial rescue of muscle strength and mass. Moreover, the association of EPA and exercise reduced the dramatic PAX‐7 accumulation and stimulated the increase of PCG‐1 protein. Conclusions Overall, the present data suggest that exercise is an effective tool that should be added for combined therapeutic approaches against cancer cachexia. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s13539‐011‐0028‐4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.