Rikkunshito, a ghrelin potentiator, ameliorates anorexia–cachexia syndrome

Anorexia–cachexia syndrome develops during the advanced stages of various chronic diseases in which patients exhibit a decreased food intake, weight loss, and muscle tissue wasting. For these patients, this syndrome is a critical problem leading to an increased rate of morbidity and mortality. The p...

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Autores principales: Fujitsuka, Naoki, Uezono, Yasuhito
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Frontiers Media S.A. 2014
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4261902/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25540621
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2014.00271
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author Fujitsuka, Naoki
Uezono, Yasuhito
author_facet Fujitsuka, Naoki
Uezono, Yasuhito
author_sort Fujitsuka, Naoki
collection PubMed
description Anorexia–cachexia syndrome develops during the advanced stages of various chronic diseases in which patients exhibit a decreased food intake, weight loss, and muscle tissue wasting. For these patients, this syndrome is a critical problem leading to an increased rate of morbidity and mortality. The present pharmacological therapies for treating anorexia–cachexia have limited effectiveness. The Japanese herbal medicine rikkunshito is often prescribed for the treatment of anorexia and upper gastrointestinal (GI) disorders. Thus, rikkunshito is expected to be beneficial for the treatment of patients with anorexia–cachexia syndrome. In this review, we summarize the effects of rikkunshito and its mechanisms of action on anorexia–cachexia. Persistent loss of appetite leads to a progressive depletion of body energy stores, which is frequently associated with cachexia. Consequently, regulating appetite and energy homeostasis is critically important for treating cachexia. Ghrelin is mainly secreted from the stomach, and it plays an important role in initiating feeding, controlling GI motility, and regulating energy expenditure. Recent clinical and basic science studies have demonstrated that the critical mechanism of rikkunshito underlies endogenous ghrelin activity. Interestingly, several components of rikkunshito target multiple gastric and central sites, and regulate the secretion, receptor sensitization, and degradation of ghrelin. Rikkunshito is effective for the treatment of anorexia, body weight loss, muscle wasting, and anxiety-related behavior. Furthermore, treatment with rikkunshito was observed to prolong survival in an animal model of cachexia. The use of a potentiator of ghrelin signaling, such as rikkunshito, may represent a novel approach for the treatment of anorexia–cachexia syndrome.
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spelling pubmed-42619022014-12-24 Rikkunshito, a ghrelin potentiator, ameliorates anorexia–cachexia syndrome Fujitsuka, Naoki Uezono, Yasuhito Front Pharmacol Pharmacology Anorexia–cachexia syndrome develops during the advanced stages of various chronic diseases in which patients exhibit a decreased food intake, weight loss, and muscle tissue wasting. For these patients, this syndrome is a critical problem leading to an increased rate of morbidity and mortality. The present pharmacological therapies for treating anorexia–cachexia have limited effectiveness. The Japanese herbal medicine rikkunshito is often prescribed for the treatment of anorexia and upper gastrointestinal (GI) disorders. Thus, rikkunshito is expected to be beneficial for the treatment of patients with anorexia–cachexia syndrome. In this review, we summarize the effects of rikkunshito and its mechanisms of action on anorexia–cachexia. Persistent loss of appetite leads to a progressive depletion of body energy stores, which is frequently associated with cachexia. Consequently, regulating appetite and energy homeostasis is critically important for treating cachexia. Ghrelin is mainly secreted from the stomach, and it plays an important role in initiating feeding, controlling GI motility, and regulating energy expenditure. Recent clinical and basic science studies have demonstrated that the critical mechanism of rikkunshito underlies endogenous ghrelin activity. Interestingly, several components of rikkunshito target multiple gastric and central sites, and regulate the secretion, receptor sensitization, and degradation of ghrelin. Rikkunshito is effective for the treatment of anorexia, body weight loss, muscle wasting, and anxiety-related behavior. Furthermore, treatment with rikkunshito was observed to prolong survival in an animal model of cachexia. The use of a potentiator of ghrelin signaling, such as rikkunshito, may represent a novel approach for the treatment of anorexia–cachexia syndrome. Frontiers Media S.A. 2014-12-10 /pmc/articles/PMC4261902/ /pubmed/25540621 http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2014.00271 Text en Copyright © 2014 Fujitsuka and Uezono. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
spellingShingle Pharmacology
Fujitsuka, Naoki
Uezono, Yasuhito
Rikkunshito, a ghrelin potentiator, ameliorates anorexia–cachexia syndrome
title Rikkunshito, a ghrelin potentiator, ameliorates anorexia–cachexia syndrome
title_full Rikkunshito, a ghrelin potentiator, ameliorates anorexia–cachexia syndrome
title_fullStr Rikkunshito, a ghrelin potentiator, ameliorates anorexia–cachexia syndrome
title_full_unstemmed Rikkunshito, a ghrelin potentiator, ameliorates anorexia–cachexia syndrome
title_short Rikkunshito, a ghrelin potentiator, ameliorates anorexia–cachexia syndrome
title_sort rikkunshito, a ghrelin potentiator, ameliorates anorexia–cachexia syndrome
topic Pharmacology
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4261902/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25540621
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2014.00271
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