# PQ6: Lipocalin-2 as a therapeutic target for prevention of cancer cachexia

> **NIH NIH R01** · OREGON HEALTH & SCIENCE UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $393,676

## Abstract

Project Summary:
Illness behaviors, metabolic disturbances, and cognitive decline are common in patients with chronic systemic
diseases, and contribute substantially to quality of life and ultimate survival. Other illness-induced morbidities
including anorexia and lethargy also compromise the ability of patients to recover from life-saving or extending
interventions, and diminish the motivational drive to aggressively battle the underlying condition. Although
cachexia in cancer patients was described more than two thousand years ago, the central mechanisms
underlying this disorder are poorly understood. Furthermore, there is currently no effective pharmaceutical
treatment. Cognitive decline is common in all chronic diseases, and can be a presenting complaint in cancer
patients, even prior to initiation of therapy. Our laboratory is dedicated to unraveling the basic mechanisms
whereby cancer triggers neuroinflammation, a key driver of cachexia and cognitive decline in patients with
cancer. In this proposal, we will focus on understanding the scope and mechanism by which systemic illness
induces the production of a molecule called lipocalin-2, that in turn acts on the brain to cause loss of appetite
and cognitive decline. The significance of this proposal resides in its unique combination of our historical focus
on neuroendocrinology and neuroinflammation, with new collaborations and efforts directed at understanding
the extent and mechanisms of anorexia and neurocognitive decline in patients with cancer. The long-term goal
of our research is to gain mechanistic understanding of the acute illness response and how it is transitioned
into chronic neuroinflammation in all cancer types, in order to develop more effective therapeutic interventions.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10152268
- **Project number:** 1R01CA257452-01
- **Recipient organization:** OREGON HEALTH & SCIENCE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Daniel L. Marks
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $393,676
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-04-01 → 2026-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10152268

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10152268, PQ6: Lipocalin-2 as a therapeutic target for prevention of cancer cachexia (1R01CA257452-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10152268. Licensed CC0.

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