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Lambert M, Ouimet LA, Wan C, Stewart A, Collins B, Vitoroulis I, Bielajew C. Cancer-related cognitive impairment in breast cancer survivors: An examination of conceptual and statistical cognitive domains using principal component analysis. Oncol Rev 2018; 12:371. [PMID: 30294410 PMCID: PMC6170883 DOI: 10.4081/oncol.2018.371] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2018] [Accepted: 08/07/2018] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
There is a great deal of variability in the composition of neuropsychological test batteries used in the assessment of cancerrelated cognitive impairment (CRCI). Not only the development of a gold standard approach for CRCI assessment would allow for easier identification of women suffering from CRCI but it would also promote optimal care for survivors. As a first step towards the development of a valid and reliable unified test battery, the objective of this study was to verify whether the theoretical domains commonly used in CRCI assessment are statistically supported, before and after breast cancer treatment. Principal component analyses (PCA) were performed on the results from 23 neuropsychological tests grouped into eight conceptual domains. For baseline data, the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin was .82 and Bartlett's X2(253, N=95) = 949.48, P<0.001. A five-component solution explained 60.94% of the common variance. For the post-treatment data, the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin was .83 and Bartlett's X2(253, N=95) = 1007.21, P<0.001 and a five component solution explained 62.03% of the common variance. Although a visual comparison of the theoretical model with those determined via PCA indicated important overlap between conceptual domains and statistical components, significant dissimilarities were also observed.
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Kovalchuk A, Ilnytskyy Y, Rodriguez-Juarez R, Shpyleva S, Melnyk S, Pogribny I, Katz A, Sidransky D, Kovalchuk O, Kolb B. Chemo brain or tumor brain - that is the question: the presence of extracranial tumors profoundly affects molecular processes in the prefrontal cortex of TumorGraft mice. Aging (Albany NY) 2018; 9:1660-1676. [PMID: 28758896 PMCID: PMC5559168 DOI: 10.18632/aging.101243] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2017] [Accepted: 05/22/2017] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
Cancer chemotherapy causes numerous persistent central nervous system complications. This condition is known as chemo brain. Cognitive impairments occur even before treatment, and hence are referred to as cancer associated cognitive changes, or tumor brain. There is much yet to be learned about the mechanisms of both chemo brain and tumor brain. The frequency and timing of chemo brain and tumor brain occurrence and persistence strongly suggest they may be epigenetic in nature and associated with altered gene expression. Here we used TumorGraftTM models wherein part of a patient's tumor is removed and grafted into immune-deficient mice and conducted global gene expression and DNA methylation analysis. We show that malignant non-central nervous system tumor growth causes profound molecular alterations in the brain. Mice harbouring triple negative or progesterone positive breast cancer TumorGrafts exhibited altered gene expression, decreased levels of DNA methylation, increased levels of DNA hydroxymethylation, and oxidative stress in the prefrontal cortex. Interestingly, chemotherapy did not have any additional synergistic effects on the analyzed processes. The molecular changes observed in this study are known signs of neurodegeneration and brain aging. This study provides an important roadmap for future large-scale analysis of the molecular and cellular mechanisms of tumor brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Kovalchuk
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB T1K 6T5, Canada.,Leaders in Medicine Program, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Yaroslav Ilnytskyy
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB T1K 6T5, Canada
| | - Rocio Rodriguez-Juarez
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB T1K 6T5, Canada
| | - Svitlana Shpyleva
- Division of Biochemical Toxicology, National Center for Toxicological Research, FDA, Jefferson, AR 72079, USA.,Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR 72205, USA
| | - Stepan Melnyk
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR 72205, USA
| | - Igor Pogribny
- Division of Biochemical Toxicology, National Center for Toxicological Research, FDA, Jefferson, AR 72079, USA
| | - Amanda Katz
- Department of Oncology, Champions Oncology, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - David Sidransky
- Department of Oncology, Champions Oncology, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Olga Kovalchuk
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB T1K 6T5, Canada
| | - Bryan Kolb
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB T1K 6T5, Canada
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Kovalchuk A, Ilnytskyy Y, Rodriguez-Juarez R, Katz A, Sidransky D, Kolb B, Kovalchuk O. Growth of malignant extracranial tumors alters microRNAome in the prefrontal cortex of TumorGraft mice. Oncotarget 2017; 8:88276-88293. [PMID: 29179434 PMCID: PMC5687604 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.19835] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2017] [Accepted: 04/27/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
A wide array of central nervous system complications, neurological deficits, and cognitive impairments occur and persist as a result of systemic cancer and cancer treatments. This condition is known as chemo brain and it affects over half of cancer survivors. Recent studies reported that cognitive impairments manifest before chemotherapy and are much broader than chemo brain alone, thereby adding in tumor brain as a component. The molecular mechanisms of chemo brain are under-investigated, and the mechanisms of tumor brain have not been analyzed at all. The frequency and timing, as well as the long-term persistence, of chemo brain and tumor brain suggest they may be epigenetic in nature. MicroRNAs, small, single-stranded non-coding RNAs, constitute an important part of the cellular epigenome and are potent regulators of gene expression. miRNAs are crucial for brain development and function, and are affected by a variety of different stresses, diseases and conditions. However, nothing is known about the effects of extracranial tumor growth or chemotherapy agents on the brain microRNAome. We used the well-established TumorGraft ™ mouse models of triple negative (TNBC) and progesterone receptor positive (PR+BC) breast cancer, and profiled global microRNAome changes in tumor-bearing mice upon chemotherapy, as compared to untreated tumor-bearing mice and intact mice. Our analysis focused on the prefrontal cortex (PFC), based on its roles in memory, learning, and executive functions, and on published data showing the PFC is a target in chemo brain. This is the first study showing that tumor presence alone significantly impacted the small RNAome of PFC tissues. Both tumor growth and chemotherapy treatment affected the small RNAome and altered levels of miRNAs, piRNAs, tRNAs, tRNA fragments and other molecules involved in post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression. Amongst those, miRNA changes were the most pronounced, involving several miRNA families, such as the miR-200 family and miR-183/96/182 cluster; both were deregulated in tumor-bearing and chemotherapy-treated animals. We saw that miRNA deregulation was associated with altered levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which plays an important role in cognition and memory and is one of the known miRNA targets. BDNF downregulation has been associated with an array of neurological conditions and could be one of the mechanisms underlying tumor brain and chemo brain. In the future our study could serve as a roadmap for further analysis of cancer and chemotherapy's neural side effects, and differentially expressed miRNAs should be explored as potential tumor brain and chemo brain biomarkers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Kovalchuk
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB, Canada.,Leaders in Medicine Program, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Yaroslav Ilnytskyy
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB, Canada
| | | | - Amanda Katz
- Department of Oncology, Champions Oncology, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - David Sidransky
- Department of Oncology, Champions Oncology, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Bryan Kolb
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB, Canada
| | - Olga Kovalchuk
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB, Canada
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Kovalchuk A, Kolb B. Chemo brain: From discerning mechanisms to lifting the brain fog-An aging connection. Cell Cycle 2017; 16:1345-1349. [PMID: 28657421 DOI: 10.1080/15384101.2017.1334022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Mounting evidence indicates that cancer treatments cause numerous deleterious effects, including central nervous system (CNS) toxicity. Chemotherapy-caused CNS side effects encompass changes in cognitive function, memory, and attention, to name a few. Although chemotherapy treatment-induced side effects occur in 16-75% of all patients, the mechanisms of these effects are not well understood. We have recently proposed a new epigenetic theory of chemo brain and, in a pioneer study, determined that cytotoxic chemotherapy agents induce oxidative DNA damage and affect molecular and epigenetic processes in the brain, and may be associated with brain aging processes. In this paper, we discuss the implications of chemo brain epigenetic effects and future perspectives, as well as outline potential links with brain aging and future translational research opportunities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Kovalchuk
- a Department of Neuroscience , University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB Canadian Institute for Advanced Research , Toronto , ON Alberta Epigenetics Network, AB
| | - Bryan Kolb
- a Department of Neuroscience , University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB Canadian Institute for Advanced Research , Toronto , ON Alberta Epigenetics Network, AB
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