Recent study suggests a potential strategy to stop chemotherapy treatments from damaging nerves, and the other discloses hitherto unknown consequences of germs that are known to cause severe illness in adults but were previously believed to be safe for infants.
Preventing Chemotherapy-Induced Nerve Damage with Psilocybin
Studies in mice indicate that the hallucinogenic drug psilocybin may help avoid the nerve damage that frequently follows chemotherapy.
Long after treatment is over, chemotherapy-related peripheral neuropathy can cause pain, numbness, increased sensitivity to cold, and loss of sensation that are frequently irreversible. Researchers reported that psilocybin directly affects the peripheral nervous system through brain cell surface proteins called serotonin 5-HT2A receptors. In mice, two doses of psilocybin administered before chemotherapy prevented hypersensitivity to cold, protected sensory nerve endings, and preserved touch sensation without affecting chemotherapy’s antitumor activity. The drug’s neuroprotective benefits were reversed by blocking the 5-HT2A pathway, while psilocybin-like protection was obtained by utilizing a non-hallucinogenic substance that stimulates the same brain-cell surface proteins.
The researchers discovered that psilocybin also assisted in shielding the mitochondria, or “energy factories,” of nerve cells from the harmful effects of chemotherapy medications.
According to a statement from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center’s study leader, Dr. Moran Amit, “there is an urgent need for treatments that prevent nerve injury without interfering with lifesaving chemotherapy.” “Rather than treating symptoms after they become persistent, these findings provide important insights into how psilocybin may protect nerves before damage occurs.”
In order to ascertain if the processes seen in the lab translate into clinically significant reductions in peripheral neuropathy in people, his team’s findings will serve as the foundation for an upcoming mid-stage trial assessing psilocybin during chemotherapy in patients with various cancer types.
Rethinking C. diff in Infants: Hidden Effects on Gut Development
Up until recently, doctors have not been concerned about the fact that 40% to 90% of infants in developed countries have the organisms in their intestines since “C. diff” infections in infants do not cause the severe gastrointestinal symptoms the bacteria cause in adults.
Researchers have found that the Clostridium difficile bacterium can alter the developing newborn gut and cause long-term effects without producing symptoms.
Toxins from C. diff can induce symptoms in adults that range from deadly colonic inflammation to severe diarrhea. Every year in the United States, some 500,000 persons contract the disease, which leads to about 30,000 fatal cases.
However, infants consistently appeared to be immune to the bacterium’s effects.
However, does asymptomatic actually mean inconsequential? According to a statement from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) study leader Joseph Zackular, “Could a toxin-producing pathogen actually be reshaping the developing gut without causing obvious symptoms?”
The researchers discovered that the presence of C. diff caused remodeling of the epithelium, the layer of cells lining the gut, and reshaping of the immune system that protects the moist inner surfaces of the intestines in studies of mice and lab tests of intestinal biopsy samples from human infants and mini-intestines made from human tissue in test tubes.
The researchers announced that these changes were also seen in the intestines of human newborns colonized with C. diff.
According to a statement from study co-author Kathryn Hamilton, who is also at CHOP, “the infant gut epithelium is still building itself, so C. diff doesn’t just injure it; it can alter the developmental trajectory of the tissue in ways that may last into adulthood.”
The authors also state that further research is necessary to fully understand these effects’ long-term impact.
Additionally, they intend to create a maternal vaccination that targets C. diff, like current vaccines that immunize mothers to prevent pertussis and RSV in infants.
Researchers are exploring an unexpected potential way to reduce nerve damage associated with chemotherapy. A recent study from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center found that psilocybin, a psychedelic compound, prevented chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy in several preclinical models.
Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy can cause symptoms such as numbness, tingling, pain, sensitivity to cold and weakness, particularly in the hands and feet. In some patients, these effects can continue long after chemotherapy has ended and may significantly affect daily life.
How Chemotherapy Can Cause Nerve Damage
While chemotherapy is an important cancer treatment, some chemotherapy medicines can also affect healthy nerve cells. The resulting peripheral neuropathy can become severe enough to interfere with movement, sensation and quality of life.
