Visceral obesity (VO), associated with excessive visceral adipose tissue (VAT), has been extensively studied in cancer. However, whether low VAT can predict the prognosis of colorectal liver metastases (CRLM) undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) remains unknown.
This multicentre real-world cohort study analysed data from initially resectable CRLM patients who received NAC. The predictive effect of VAT on progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) was evaluated using restricted cubic splines (RCS). VAT was categorized into low/normal VAT and VO groups using X-tile. The prognostic differences were further assessed through Kaplan–Meier (KM) analysis. The impact of changes in VAT (ΔVAT) after NAC was evaluated.
Among 1524 CRLM patients, 1105 patients (72.51%) were under 65 years old, with a median VAT of 84.00 (36.24–148.00) cm2. Of all patients, 804 (52.76%) were female. A U-shaped nonlinear relationship was observed between VAT and both PFS/OS (p < 0.001). Compared with the normal VAT, both low VAT and VO groups showed worsened PFS and OS (p < 0.05). The 3-year PFS rate was 31.6%, 69.0% and 42.0% in the low, normal VAT and VO groups (p < 0.05). The 3-year OS rate was 76.4%, 88.9% and 79.4% in the low, normal VAT and VO groups (p < 0.05). There was also a nonlinear relationship between VAT and NAC-related adverse events, objective response rate and postoperative complications (p < 0.001). An increase in ΔVAT in the low VAT group was associated with better PFS and OS (p < 0.05). In the VO group, both increases and decreases in ΔVAT were associated with worsened PFS and OS (p < 0.05).
This study is the first to reveal that low VAT and VO can predict PFS and OS in CRLM patients undergoing NAC. Baseline VAT and ΔVAT may serve as important indicators for risk stratification and personalized treatment in CRLM patients.
Glucocorticoid therapy has a beneficial effect in several diseases, but chronic treatment has adverse effects, including muscle atrophy, which refers to the gradual decrease in muscle mass, size and strength. It is important to know how the muscle atrophy occurs, but the underlying mechanism is not yet fully understood. This study shows that dexamethasone decreases levels of the transcriptional co-activator with PDZ binding motif (TAZ), which facilitates dexamethasone-induced muscle atrophy.
To induce muscle atrophy, C2C12 myotubes were treated with dexamethasone, and mice were fed with water containing dexamethasone. Muscle atrophy was analysed for the expression of myosin heavy chain, MuRF1 and Atrogin-1 using immunofluorescence staining, immunoblot analysis and qRT-PCR. Muscle tissue was analysed by haematoxylin and eosin staining. Adeno-associated virus was used for overexpression of wild-type and mutant TAZ.
TAZ levels decrease in dexamethasone-treated mice (0.36-fold, p < 0.001) and C2C12 myotubes (0.44-fold, p = 0.024). Overexpression of the TAZ mutant, which resists its proteolytic degradation, inhibits dexamethasone-induced muscle atrophy. Atrogin-1 and MuRF1 interact with TAZ and facilitate its degradation in dexamethasone-treated C2C12 myotubes. TAZ mutant stimulates protein synthesis through activation of mTOR signalling via induction of RhebL1 (DEX; Con vs, TAZ4SA: 5.1-fold, p < 0.001) in dexamethasone-treated mice. Ginsenoside Rb3 increases TAZ levels in dexamethasone-treated mice (1.49-fold, p = 0.007) and C2C12 myotubes (1.63-fold, p = 0.01), which stimulates mTOR signalling and inhibits dexamethasone-induced muscle atrophy.
Our results demonstrate a novel regulatory mechanism of dexamethasone-induced muscle atrophy by TAZ, suggesting that stabilisation of TAZ in muscle cells ameliorates the muscle atrophy. These results suggest that TAZ may be a drug target for the dexamethasone-induced muscle atrophy.
Gupta, P, Vu, TA, Man, REK, et al., The prevalence patterns and risk factor profiles of poor muscle health and its associated components in multiethnic older Asians: The PIONEER study. Journal of cachexia, sarcopenia and muscle. Aug 2024; 15(4): 1376–1387. doi:10.1002/jcsm.13483
In the Funding ‘section’, we would like to add: “This research is supported by the National Medical Research Council (NMRC) through the SingHealth PULSES II Centre Grant (CG21APR1013).” After this sentence, it continues to read: “The grant body had no roles in design, conduct or data analysis of the study, nor in manuscript preparation and approval.”
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