Brain tumours lack metabolic versatility and are dependent largely on glucose for energy. This contrasts with normal brain tissue that can derive energy from both glucose and ketone bodies. We examined for the first time the potential efficacy of dietary therapies that reduce plasma glucose and elevate ketone bodies in the CT-2A syngeneic malignant mouse astrocytoma. C57BL/6J mice were fed either a standard diet unrestricted (SD-UR), a ketogenic diet unrestricted (KD-UR), the SD restricted to 40% (SD-R), or the KD restricted to 40% of the control standard diet (KD-R). Body weights, tumour weights, plasma glucose, b-hydroxybutyrate (b-OHB), and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) were measured 13 days after tumour implantation. CT-2A growth was rapid in both the SD-UR and KD-UR groups, but was significantly reduced in both the SD-R and KD-R groups by about 80%. The results indicate that plasma glucose predicts CT-2A growth and that growth is dependent more on the amount than on the origin of dietary calories. Also, restriction of either diet significantly reduced the plasma levels of IGF-1, a biomarker for angiogenesis and tumour progression. Owing to a dependence on plasma glucose, IGF-1 was also predictive of CT-2A growth. Ketone bodies are proposed to reduce stromal inflammatory activities, while providing normal brain cells with a nonglycolytic high-energy substrate. Our results in a mouse astrocytoma suggest that malignant brain tumours are potentially manageable with dietary therapies that reduce glucose and elevate ketone bodies.

Arterial medial calcification (AMC) is a hallmark of vascular disease in chronic kidney disease patients, and is a strong prognostic marker for cardiovascular and all-cause mortality. This study was aimed at determining the role of phosphate feeding and severity of uremia on AMC in a high phosphate fed (HP) mouse model of renal insufficiency. Severe (SU) and moderate (MU) uremia was achieved by varying the degree of renal ablation in calcification-prone DBA/2 mice. SU/HP and MU/HP mice developed extensive AMC whereas normal phosphate fed (NP) uremic mice and sham controls did not. AMC in the SU/HP mice was associated with statistically significant hyperphosphatemia. In contrast, MU/HP mice were not hyperphosphatemic, but a significant rise in serum fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF-23) and osteopontin (OPN) levels in this group was observed. Further, FGF-23 and OPN were significantly correlated with AMC. Histochemistry revealed widespread AMC with no evidence of atherosclerotic disease. At early stages of calcification, upregulation of osteochondrogenic markers, Runx2 and OPN, and downregulation of smooth muscle cell (SMC) marker, SM22α, in medial SMCs was observed. In extensively calcified regions, medial SMC drop out was evident. These studies support important roles for phosphate loading and degree of renal insufficiency in mediating AMC in mice, and suggest potential roles for FGF-23 and OPN as markers and/or inducers of AMC.

Diet and lifestyle produce major effects on tumour incidence, prevalence, and natural history. Moderate dietary restriction has long been recognised as a natural therapy that improves health, promotes longevity, and reduces both the incidence and growth of many tumour types. Dietary restriction differs from fasting or starvation by reducing total food and caloric intake without causing nutritional deficiencies. No prior studies have evaluated the responsiveness of malignant brain cancer to dietary restriction. We found that a moderate dietary restriction of 30 -40% significantly inhibited the intracerebral growth of the CT-2A syngeneic malignant mouse astrocytoma by almost 80%. The total dietary intake for the ad libitum control group (n=9) and the dietary restriction experimental group (n=10) was about 20 and 13 Kcal day 71 , respectively. Overall health and vitality was better in the dietary restriction-fed mice than in the ad libitum-fed mice. Tumour microvessel density (Factor VIII immunostaining) was two-fold less in the dietary restriction mice than in the ad libitum mice, whereas the tumour apoptotic index (TUNEL assay) was three-fold greater in the dietary restriction mice than in the ad libitum mice. CT-2A tumour cellinduced vascularity was also less in the dietary restriction mice than in the ad libitum mice in the in vivo Matrigel plug assay. These findings indicate that dietary restriction inhibited CT-2A growth by reducing angiogenesis and by enhancing apoptosis. Dietary restriction may shift the tumour microenvironment from a proangiogenic to an antiangiogenic state through multiple effects on the tumour cells and the tumour-associated host cells. Our data suggest that moderate dietary restriction may be an effective antiangiogenic therapy for recurrent malignant brain cancers.

Arterial medial calcification (AMC), a hallmark of vascular disease in uremic patients, is highly correlated with serum phosphate levels and cardiovascular mortality. To determine the mechanisms of AMC, mice were made uremic by partial right-side renal ablation (week 0), followed by left-side nephrectomy at week 2. At 3 weeks, mice were switched to a high-phosphate diet, and various parameters of disease progression were examined over time. Serum phosphate, calcium, and fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF-23) were up-regulated as early as week 4. Whereas serum phosphate and calcium levels declined to normal by 10 weeks, FGF-23 levels remained elevated through 16 weeks, consistent with an increased phosphate load. Elastin turnover and vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) phenotype change were early events, detected by week 4 and before AMC. Both AMC and VSMC loss were significantly elevated by week 8. Matrix metalloprotease 2 (MMP-2) and cathepsin S were present at baseline and were significantly elevated at weeks 8 and 12. In contrast, MMP-9 was not up-regulated until week 12. These findings over time suggest that VSMC phenotype change and VSMC loss (early phosphate-dependent events) may be necessary and sufficient to promote AMC in uremic mice fed a high-phosphate diet, whereas elastin degradation might be necessary but is not sufficient to induce AMC (because elastin degradation occurred also in uremic mice on a normal-phosphate diet, but they did not develop AMC).

The ganglioside composition of seven experimental brain tumors was examined in C57BL/6J mice. The tumors were produced from 20-methylcholanthrene (20-MC) implantation into either the cerebrum or cerebellum and were maintained in serial transplants through many generations. The tumors studied were grown subcutaneously as solid tumors, and cells from two of the tumors were also studied in culture. Histologically, all of the tumors were similar and could be broadly classified as highly malignant, poorly differentiated anaplastic astrocytomas. The total ganglioside sialic acid content of the solid tumors was markedly lower than that in adult mouse brain. In addition to N-acetylneuraminic acid (NeuAc), the gangliosides in the solid tumors contained significant amounts of N-glycolylneuraminic acid (NeuGc). The seven solid tumors fell into two general groups with respect to ganglioside composition. Furthermore, the differences in ganglioside composition between the two tumor groups were strongly associated with differences in tumor cell cohesion. The tumors in one group had high levels of GM3 hematosides, low levels of oligosialogangliosides, and grew as firm cohesive tissues. The tumors in the other group, however, had lower levels of GM3 hematosides, noticeable amounts of oligosialogangliosides and grew as soft noncohesive tissues. In culture, clonal cells from one of the tumors in the first group grew as clumps or islands and contained GM3 as the only major ganglioside, whereas clonal cells from a tumor in the second group grew as sheets or monolayers and contained little GM3, but expressed several gangliosides with complex structures. In marked contrast to the gangliosides in the solid tumors, the gangliosides in the cultured tumor cells contained trace amounts of NeuGc. Since NeuGc containing gangliosides are abundant in mouse nonneural tissues, the high content of NeuGc gangliosides in the solid tumors may arise from infiltration of nonneural tissue elements, e.g., macrophages, lymphocytes, and endothelial cells.

GM1 gangliosidosis is a glycosphingolipid (GSL) lysosomal storage disease caused by a genetic deficiency of acid b-galactosidase (b-gal), the enzyme that catabolyzes GM1 within lysosomes. Accumulation of GM1 and its asialo form (GA1) occurs primarily in the brain, leading to progressive neurodegeneration and brain dysfunction. Substrate reduction therapy aims to decrease the rate of GSL biosynthesis to counterbalance the impaired rate of catabolism. The imino sugar N-butyldeoxygalactonojirimycin (N B-DGJ) is a competitive inhibitor of the ceramide-specific glucosyltransferase that catalyzes the first step in GSL biosynthesis. Neonatal C57BL/6J (B6) and b-gal knockout (-/-) mice were injected daily from post-natal day 2 (p-2) to p-5 with either vehicle or N B-DGJ at 600 mg or 1200 mg/kg body weight. These drug concentrations significantly reduced total brain ganglioside and GM1 content in the B6 and the b-gal (-/-) mice. Drug treatment had no significant effect on viability, body weight, brain weight, or brain water content in the B6 and b-gal (-/-) mice. Significant elevations in neutral lipids (GA1, ceramide, and sphingomyelin) were observed in the N B-DGJ-treated b-gal (-/-) mice, but were not associated with adverse effects. Also, N B-DGJ treatment of B6 and b-gal (-/-) mice from p-2 to p-5 had no subsequent effect on brain ganglioside content at p-21. Our results show that N B-DGJ is effective in reducing total brain ganglioside and GM1 content at early neonatal ages. These findings suggest that substrate reduction therapy using N B-DGJ may be an effective early intervention for GM1 gangliosidosis and possibly other GSL lysosomal storage diseases.

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Background Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a worldwide health problem with increasing prevalence and poor outcomes including severe cardiovascular disease and renal osteodystrophy. With advances in medical treatment, CKD patients are living longer and require oral care. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of CKD and dietary phosphate on mandibular bone structure using a uremic mouse model. Methods Uremia (U) was induced in female DBA/2 mice by partial renal ablation. Uremic mice received either a normal phosphate (NP) or a high phosphate (HP) diet. Sham surgeries were performed in a control group of mice, and half received either a NP or a HP diet. At termination, animals were sacrificed and mandibles collected for microcomputed tomography (micro-CT) and histological analysis. Results Sera levels of BUN, PTH and alkaline phosphatase were all significantly increased in U/NP and U/HP vs. Sham controls, while serum calcium was increased in the U/HP group and no differences were noted in serum phosphate levels between groups. Micro-CT analyses revealed a significant reduction in cortical bone thickness and an increase in trabecular thickness and trabecular bone volume/tissue volume in U/NP and U/HP groups compared to Sham/NP. A significant reduction in cortical bone thickness was also found in the Sham/HP vs. Sham/NP group. Histological evaluation confirmed increased trabeculation in the U groups. Conclusions CKD in mice, especially under conditions of high phosphate feeding, results in marked effects on alveolar bone homeostasis.