Abstract
Loss of protein stores, presenting as clinical wasting, is reported to have a prevalence of 30–60% and is an important risk factor for mortality in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. There is debate as to whether the clinical wasting in CKD patients represents malnutrition or cachexia. Malnutrition results from inadequate intake of nutrients, despite a good appetite, and manifests as weight loss associated with adaptive metabolic responses such as decreased basic metabolic rate and preservation of lean body mass at the expense of fat mass. Furthermore, the abnormalities in malnutrition can usually be overcome simply by supplying more food or altering the composition of the diet. In contrast, cachexia is characterized by maladaptive responses such as anorexia, elevated basic metabolic rate, wasting of lean body tissue, and underutilization of fat tissue for energy. Diet supplementation and intradialytic parenteral nutrition have not been successful in reversing cachexia in CKD. The etiology of cachexia in CKD is complex and multifactorial. Two major factors causing muscle wasting in uremia are acidosis and decreased insulin responses. Inflammation secondary to cytokines may also play a significant role. The hypoalbuminemia of CKD patients is principally associated with inflammation and not changes in food intake. There is also recent evidence that hypothalamic neuropeptides may be important in the downstream signaling of cytokines in the pathogenesis of cachexia in CKD. Elevated circulating levels of cytokines, such as leptin, may be an important cause of uremia-associated cachexia via signaling through the central melanocortin system. Further research into the molecular pathways leading to cachexia may lead to novel therapeutic therapy for this devastating and potentially fatal complication of CKD.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Lowrie EG, Lew NL (1990) Death risk in hemodialysis patients: the predictive value of commonly measured variables and an evaluation of death rate differences between facilities. Am J Kidney Dis 15:458–482
Gruppen MP, Groothoff JW, Prins M, van der Wouw P, Offringa M, Bos WJ, Davin JC, Heymans HS (2003) Cardiac disease in young adult patients with end-stage renal disease since childhood: a Dutch cohort study. Kidney Int 63:1058–1065
Mitch WE (2002) Malnutrition: a frequent misdiagnosis for hemodialysis patients. J Clin Invest 1104:437–439
Inagaki J, Rodriguez V, Bodey GP (1974) Causes of death in cancer patients. Cancer 33:568–571
Suttmann U, Ockenga J, Selberg O, Hoogestraat L, Deicher H, Muller MJ (1995) Incidence and prognostic value of malnutrition and wasting in human immunodeficiency virus-infected outpatients. J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr Hum Retrovirol 8:239–246
Windsor JA, Hill GI (1988) Risk factors for postoperative pneumonia. The importance of protein depletion. Arch Surg 208:209–217
Utaka S, Avesani CM, Draibe SA, Kamimura SA, Andreoni S, Cuppari L (2005) Inflammation is associated with increased energy expenditure in patients with chronic kidney disease. Am J Clin Nutr 82:801–805
Wang AY, Sea MM, Tang N, Sanderson JE, Lui SF, Li PK, Woo J (2004) Resting energy expenditure and subsequent mortality risk in peritoneal dialysis patients. J Am Soc Nephrol 15:3134–3143
Tisdale MJ (2005) Molecular pathways leading to cancer cachexia. Physiology 20:340–348
Loprinzi CL, Schaid DJ, Dose AM, Durnham NL, Jensen MD (1993) Body composition changes in patients who gain weight while receiving megestrol acetate. J Clin Oncol 11:152–154
Mitch WE (1998) Robert H Herman Memorial Award in Clinical Nutrition Lecture, 1997. Mechanisms causing loss of lean body mass in kidney disease. Am J Clin Nutr 67:359–366
Kaysen GA, Dubin JA, Muller HG, Rosales L, Levin NW, Mitch WE; HEMO Study Group (2004) Inflammation and reduced albumin synthesis associated with stable decline in serum albumin in hemodialysis patients. Kidney Int 65:1408–1415
Wong CS, Gipson DS, Gillen DL, Emerson S, Koepsell T, Sherrard DJ, Watkins SL, Stehman-Breen C (2000) Anthropometric measures and risk of death in children with end-stage renal disease. Am J Kidney Dis 36:811–819
Sarnak MJ, Levey AS (2000) Cardiovascular disease and chronic renal disease: a new paradigm. Am J Kidney Dis 35(4 Suppl 1):S117–S131
Kaysen G (2004) Inflammation: cause of vascular disease and malnutrition in dialysis patients. Semin Nephrol 24:431–436
Lofberg E, Wernerman J, Anderstam B, Bergstrom J (1997) Correction of acidosis in dialysis patients increases branched-chain and total essential amino acid levels in muscle. Clin Nephrol 48:230–237
Boirie Y, Broyer M, Gagnadoux MF, Niaudet P, Bresson JL (2000) Alterations of protein metabolism by metabolic acidosis in children with chronic renal failure. Kidney Int 58:236–241
Cheung W, Yu PX, Little BM, Cone RD, Marks DL, Mak RH (2005) Role of leptin and melanocortin signaling in uremia-associated cachexia. J Clin Invest 115:1659–1665
Bossola M, Muscaritoli M, Costelli P, Nanni G, Tazza L, Panocchia N, Busquets S, Argiles J, Lopez-Soriano FJ, Grieco G, Baccino FM, Rossi Fanelli F, Castagneto M, Luciani G (2002) Muscle ubiquitin m-RNA levels in patients with end-stage renal disease on maintenance hemodialysis. J Nephrol 5:527–552
Pickering WP, Price SR, Bircher G, Marinovic AC, Mitch WE, Walls J (2002) Nutrition in CAPD: serum bicarbonate and the ubiquitin-proteasome system in muscle. Kidney Int 61:1286–1292
Mak RH, Cheung W, Cone RD, Marks DL (2006) Melanocortin signaling in uremic cachexia: basis for a novel therapeutic strategy. Nat Clin Pract Nephrol (in press)
Reeds PJ, Field CR, Jahoon F (1994) Do the differences between the amino acid compositions of acute-phase and muscle proteins have a bearing on nitrogen loss in traumatic states. J Nutr 124:906–910
Mak RHK (1998) Insulin, branched-chain amino acids, and growth failure in uremia. Pediatr Nephrol 12:637–642
Du J, Hu Z, Mitch WE (2005) Molecular mechanisms activating muscle protein degradation in chronic kidney disease and other catabolic conditions. Eur J Clin Invest 35:157–163
Fong Y, Moldawer LL, Marano M, Wei H, Barber A, Manogue K, Tracey KJ, Kuo G, Fischman DA, Cerami A, Lowry S (1989) Cachectin/TNF or IL-1 alpha induces cachexia with redistribution of body proteins. Am J Physiol 256(3 Pt 2):R659–R665
Plata-Salaman CR, Sonti G, Borkoski JP, Wilson CD, French-Mullen JM (1996) Anorexia induced by chronic central administration of cytokines at estimated pathophysiological concentrations. Physiol Behav 60:867–875
Sherry BA, Gelin J, Fong Y, Marano M, Wei H, Cerami A, Lowry SF, Lundholm KG, Moldawer LL (1989) Anticachectin/tumor necrosis factor-alpha antibodies attenuate development of cachexia in tumor models. FASEB J 3:1956–1962
Matthys P, Heremans H, Opdenakker G, Billiau A (1991) Anti-interferon-gamma antibody treatment, growth of Lewis lung tumours in mice and tumour-associated cachexia. Eur J Cancer 27:182–187
Strassman G, Kambayashi T (1995) Inhibition of experimental cancer cachexia by anticytokine and anticytokine-receptor therapy. Cytokines Mol Ther 1:107–113
Kawamura I, Morishita R, Tomita N, Lacey E, Aketa M, Tsujimoto S, Manda T, Tomoi M, Kida I, Higaki J, Kaneda Y, Shimomura K, Ogihara T (1999) Intratumoral injection of oligonucleotides to the NF kappa B binding site inhibits cachexia in a mouse tumor model. Gene Ther 6:91–97
Costelli P, Bossola M, Muscaritoli M, Grieco G, Bonelli G, Bellantone R, Doglietto GB, Baccino FM, Rossi Fanelli F (2002) Anticytokine treatment prevents the increase in activity of ATP-ubiquitin and Ca2+-dependent proteolytic systems in the muscle of tumour-bearing rats. Cytokine 19:1–5
Mamoun AH, Soderstein P, Anderstam B, Bergstrom J (1999) Evidence of splanchnic-brain signaling in inhibition of ingestive behavior by middle molecules. J Am Soc Nephrol 10:309–314
Espat NJ, Copeland EM, Moldwar LL (1994) Tumor necrosis factor and cachexia: a current prospective. Surg Oncol 3:255–262
McCarthy DO (2000) Cytokines and the anorexia of infection: potential mechanism and treatments. Biol Res Nurs 1:287–298
McCarthy DO (2000) Tumor necrosis factor alpha and interleukin-6 have differential effects on food intake and gastric emptying in fasted rats. Res Nurs Health 23:222–228
Kalantar-Zadeh K, Glock G, McAlister CJ, Humphreys MH, Kopple JD (2004) Appetite and inflammation, nutrition, anemia and clinical outcome in hemodialysis patients. Am J Clin Nutr 80:299–307
Diaz-Buxo JA, Lowrie EG, Lew NL, Zhang H, Lazarus JM (2000) Quality-of-life evaluation using Short Form 36: comparison in hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis patients. Am J Kidney Dis 35:293–300
Mingardi G (1998) Quality of life and end stage renal disease therapeutic programs. DIA-QOL Group. Dialysis quality of life. Int J Artif Organs 21:741–747
Batterham RL, Cowley MA, Small CJ, Herzog H, Cohen MA, Dakin CL, Wren AM, Brynes AE, Low MJ, Ghatei MA, Cone RD, Bloom SR (2002) Gut hormone PYY3-36 physiologically inhibits food intake. Nature 418:650–654
Shellock FG, Riedinger MS, Fishbein MC (1986) Brown adipose tissue in cancer patients, possible cause of cancer-induced cachexia. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol 111:82–85
Bing C, Brown M, King P, Collins P, Tisdale MJ, Williams G (2000) Increased gene expression of brown fat uncoupling protein (UCP)1 and skeletal muscle UCP2 and UCP3 in MAC16-induced cancer cachexia. Cancer Res 60:2405–2410
Collins P, Bing C, McCullock P, Williams G (2002) Muscle UCP-3 mRNA levels are elevated in weight loss associated with gastrointestinal adenocarcinoma in humans. Br J Cancer 86:372–375
Busquets S, Carbo N, Almendro V, Figueras M, Lopez-Soriano FJ, Argilles JM (2001) Hyperlipidemia: a role in regulating UCP3 gene expression in skeletal muscle during cancer cachexia. FEBS Lett 505:255–258
Pupim LB, Flakoll PJ, Brouillette JR, Levenhagen DK, Hakim RM, Ikizler TA (2002) Intradialytic parenteral nutrition improves protein and energy homeostasis in chronic hemodialysis patients. J Clin Invest 110:483–492
Kopple JD (1999) Therapeutic approaches to malnutrition in chronic dialysis patients: the different modalities of nutritional support. Am J Kidney Dis 33:180–185
Wolfson M, Foulks CJ (1996) Intradialytic parenteral nutrition: a useful therapy? Nutr Clin Pract 11:5–11
American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition Board of Directors and the Clinical Guidelines Task Force (2002) Guidelines for the use of parenteral and enteral nutrition in adult and pediatric patients. J Parenter Enteral Nutr 26:1SA–138SA
Betts PR, McGrath G (1974) Growth patterns and dietary intake of children with chronic renal insufficiency. Br Med J 2:189–193
Simmons JM, Wilson CJ, Potter DE, Holliday MA (1971) Relation of calorie deficiency to growth failure in children on hemodialysis and the growth response to calorie supplementation. N Engl J Med 285:653–656
Arnold WC, Danford D, Holliday M (1983) Effect of calorie supplementation on growth in children with uremia. Kidney Int 24:205–209
Walker S, Ledermann S, Trompeter R, Van’t Hoff W, Ridout D, Rees L (2003) Catch-up growth with normal parathyroid hormone levels in chronic renal failure. Pediatr Nephrol 18:1236–1241
Ellis EN, Yiu V, Harley F, Donaldson LA, Hand M, Warady BA, Wood EG; North American Pediatric Renal Transplant Cooperative Study (2001) The impact of supplemental feeding in young children on dialysis: a report of the North American Pediatric Renal Transplant Cooperative Study. Pediatr Nephrol 16:404–408
Mak RH, Cheung W, Cone RD, Marks DL (2006) Leptin and inflammation-associated cachexia in chronic kidney disease. Kidney Int 69:794–797
Sharma K, Considine RV, Michael B, Dunn SR, Weisberg LS, Kurnik BR, Kurnik PB, O’Connor J, Sinha M, Caro JF (1997) Plasma leptin is partly cleared by the kidney and is elevated in hemodialysis patients. Kidney Int 51:1980–1985
Daschner M, Tonshoff B, Blum WF, Englaro P, Wingen AM, Schaefer F, Wuhl E, Rascher W, Mehls O (1998) Inappropriate elevation of serum leptin levels in children with chronic renal failure. European Study Group for Nutritional Treatment of Chronic Renal Failure in Childhood. J Am Soc Nephrol 9:1074–1079
Perez-Fontan M, Cordido F, Rodriguez-Carmona A, Peteiro J, Garcia-Naveiro R, Garcia-Buela J (2004) Plasma ghrelin levels in patients undergoing haemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis. Nephrol Dial Transplant 19:2095–2100
Rodriguez Ayala E, Pecoits-Filho R, Heimburger O, Lindholm B, Nordfors L, Stenvinkel P (2004) Associations between plasma ghrelin levels and body composition in end-stage renal disease: a longitudinal study. Nephrol Dial Transplant 19:421–426
Wynne K, Giannitsopoulou K, Small CJ, Patterson M, Frost G, Ghatei MA, Brown EA, Bloom SR, Choi P (2005) Subcutaneous ghrelin enhances acute food intake in malnourished patients who receive maintenance peritoneal dialysis: a randomized, placebo-controlled trial. J Am Soc Nephrol 16:2111–2118
Marks DL, Ling N, Cone RD (2001) Role of central melanocortin system in cachexia. Cancer Res 61:1432–1438
Cone RD (2005) Anatomy and regulation of the central melanocortin system. Nat Neurosci 8:571–578
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Supported by grants from the National Institute of Health R01 DK 50780 and K24 DK59574 to RHM.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Mak, R.H., Cheung, W. Energy homeostasis and cachexia in chronic kidney disease. Pediatr Nephrol 21, 1807–1814 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00467-006-0194-3
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00467-006-0194-3