Neural landscape is associated with functional outcomes in irradiated patients with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma

Islam S, Gleber-Netto FO, Mulcahy CF, Glaun MDE, Srivastava S, Hunt PJ, Williams MD, Barbon CE, Spiotto M, Zhao W, Adebayo A, Akhter S, Xie T, Debnath KC, Sathishkumar HN, Myers B, Lothumalla S, Yama I, Burks JK, Gomez J, Rao X, Wang J, Woodman K, Mansour J, Arenkiel B, Osman KL, Haxton C, Lever TE, Hutcheson KA, Amit M (2024) Neural landscape is associated with functional outcomes in irradiated patients with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma. Sco Transl Med 16:eabq5585. doi: 10.1126/scitranslmed.abq558

Objective: To understand the correlation between neuronal changes and patient-reported and functional outcomes in patients with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC).

Summary: Tumor enrichment of adrenergic (TH+) and CGRP+ sensory–afferent nerves correlated with poorer swallowing outcomes. Functional electromyography recordings showed correlations between growing (GAP43+) and immature cholinergic (ChAT+DCX+) nerves and denervation patterns in survivors of OPSCC. A murine model of radiation-induced dysphagia further confirmed that immature cholinergic and CGRP+ nerves were correlated with impaired swallowing. The results suggest that CGRP+ and ChAT+ neuronal signaling play distinct roles in tumor-and radiation-induced dysphagia in OPSCC and offer a comprehensive dataset on the neural landscape of OPSCC.

Usage: 500 μg in 3 μl of alpha-CGRP-streptavidin-saporin (CGRP-SAP; #IT-94) and anti-ChAT-SAP (#IT-42) was stereotactically injected into the intraganglionic region over 3 min.

Related Products: CGRP-SAP (Cat. #IT-94), Anti-ChAT-SAP (Cat. #IT-42)