Aberrant melanocortin signaling has been implicated in the pathogenesis of wasting in chronic kidney disease (CKD). Previously, we demonstrated that agouti-related peptide (AgRP), a melenocortin-4 receptor antagonist, reduced CKD-associated cachexia in CKD mice. Our previous studies with AgRP utilized dual energy X-ray (DXA) densitometry to assess the body composition in mice (Cheung W, Kuo HJ,...

AIMS To assess the prevalence and clinical impact of reductions in the skeletal muscle mass of patients with chronic heart failure (HF). Chronic HF is accompanied by co-morbidities that influence the quality of life and outcomes. METHODS AND RESULTS We prospectively enrolled 200 patients with chronic HF. The appendicular skeletal muscle mass of the arms and the legs combined, was assessed by ...

abstract a 71-year-old male with a long history of diabetes and hypertension was admitted with mild azotemia and recurrent hyponatremia. he was diagnosed with a pituitary gland cystic tumor. on careful evaluation, his hyponatremia was found to be due to cerebral salt wasting. the patient made a full recovery following treatment for cerebral salt wasting.

Cachexia is a complex tissue-wasting syndrome characterized by inflammation, hypermetabolism, increased energy expenditure, and anorexia. Browning of white adipose tissue (WAT) is one of the significant factors that contribute to energy wasting in cachexia. By utilizing a cell implantation model, we demonstrate here that the lipid mobilizing factor zinc-α2-glycoprotein (ZAG) induces WAT brownin...

Chronic heart failure is a complex catabolic state that carries a devastating prognosis. The transition from stable disease to cardiac cachexia is not well understood. Mechanisms that maintain the wasting process involve neurohormones and pro-inflammatory cytokines, which contribute to an imbalance in anabolic and catabolic pathways. A decrease in food intake alone rarely triggers the developme...

The application of a recently developed mathematical model for predicting the spread of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in wild deer was assessed under different scenarios where harvesting is employed in disease management. A process-based mathematical model for CWD transmission in wild deer populations was recently developed and parameterized by Al-arydah et al. (2011) to provide a scientific ba...

Human and mouse prion proteins share a structural motif that regulates resistance to common chronic wasting disease (CWD) prion strains. Successful transmission of an emergent strain of CWD prion, H95+, into mice resulted in infection. Thus, emergent CWD prion strains may have higher zoonotic potential than common strains.