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Barr J, Walz A, Restaino AC, Amit M, Barclay SM, Vichaya EG, Spanos WC, Dantzer R, Talbot S, Vermeer PD. Tumor-infiltrating nerves functionally alter brain circuits and modulate behavior in a mouse model of head-and-neck cancer. eLife 2024; 13:RP97916. [PMID: 39302290 DOI: 10.7554/elife.97916] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Cancer patients often experience changes in mental health, prompting an exploration into whether nerves infiltrating tumors contribute to these alterations by impacting brain functions. Using a mouse model for head and neck cancer and neuronal tracing, we show that tumor-infiltrating nerves connect to distinct brain areas. The activation of this neuronal circuitry altered behaviors (decreased nest-building, increased latency to eat a cookie, and reduced wheel running). Tumor-infiltrating nociceptor neurons exhibited heightened calcium activity and brain regions receiving these neural projections showed elevated Fos as well as increased calcium responses compared to non-tumor-bearing counterparts. The genetic elimination of nociceptor neurons decreased brain Fos expression and mitigated the behavioral alterations induced by the presence of the tumor. While analgesic treatment restored nesting and cookie test behaviors, it did not fully restore voluntary wheel running indicating that pain is not the exclusive driver of such behavioral shifts. Unraveling the interaction between the tumor, infiltrating nerves, and the brain is pivotal to developing targeted interventions to alleviate the mental health burdens associated with cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey Barr
- Sanford Research, Cancer Biology and Immunotherapies Group, Sioux Falls, Sioux Falls, United States
| | - Austin Walz
- Sanford Research, Cancer Biology and Immunotherapies Group, Sioux Falls, Sioux Falls, United States
| | - Anthony C Restaino
- Sanford Research, Cancer Biology and Immunotherapies Group, Sioux Falls, Sioux Falls, United States
- University of South Dakota, Sanford School of Medicine, Vermillion, United States
| | - Moran Amit
- University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, United States
| | - Sarah M Barclay
- Sanford Research, Cancer Biology and Immunotherapies Group, Sioux Falls, Sioux Falls, United States
| | - Elisabeth G Vichaya
- Baylor University, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Waco, United States
| | - William C Spanos
- Sanford Research, Cancer Biology and Immunotherapies Group, Sioux Falls, Sioux Falls, United States
- University of South Dakota, Sanford School of Medicine, Vermillion, United States
| | - Robert Dantzer
- University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, United States
| | - Sebastien Talbot
- Queen's University, Department of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences, Kingston, Canada
| | - Paola D Vermeer
- Sanford Research, Cancer Biology and Immunotherapies Group, Sioux Falls, Sioux Falls, United States
- University of South Dakota, Sanford School of Medicine, Vermillion, United States
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Barr J, Walz A, Restaino AC, Amit M, Barclay SM, Vichaya EG, Spanos WC, Dantzer R, Talbot S, Vermeer PD. Tumor-infiltrating nerves functionally alter brain circuits and modulate behavior in a male mouse model of head-and-neck cancer. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2023.10.18.562990. [PMID: 37905135 PMCID: PMC10614955 DOI: 10.1101/2023.10.18.562990] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2023]
Abstract
Cancer patients often experience changes in mental health, prompting an exploration into whether nerves infiltrating tumors contribute to these alterations by impacting brain functions. Using a male mouse model for head and neck cancer, we utilized neuronal tracing techniques and show that tumor-infiltrating nerves indeed connect to distinct brain areas via the ipsilateral trigeminal ganglion. The activation of this neuronal circuitry led to behavioral alterations represented by decreased nest-building, increased latency to eat a cookie, and reduced wheel running. Tumor-infiltrating nociceptor neurons exhibited heightened activity, as indicated by increased calcium mobilization. Correspondingly, the specific brain regions receiving these neural projections showed elevated cFos and delta FosB expression in tumor-bearing mice, alongside markedly intensified calcium responses compared to non-tumor-bearing counterparts. The genetic elimination of nociceptor neurons in tumor-bearing mice led to decreased brain Fos expression and mitigated the behavioral alterations induced by the presence of the tumor. While analgesic treatment successfully restored behaviors involving oral movements to normalcy in tumor-bearing mice, it did not have a similar therapeutic effect on voluntary wheel running. This discrepancy points towards an intricate relationship, where pain is not the exclusive driver of such behavioral shifts. Unraveling the interaction between the tumor, infiltrating nerves, and the brain is pivotal to developing targeted interventions to alleviate the mental health burdens associated with cancer.
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