Tito Borner, PhD
Anorexia, Nausea, and Emesis
Tito received his PhD in Integrative Molecular Medicine from the University of Zurich in Switzerland. His thesis aimed to disentangle the neuronal mechanisms contributing to cancer anorexia-cachexia syndrome (CACS) and identify potential therapeutic options. As a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn), his interests are primarily focused on important, yet understudied, aspects of feeding behavior: nausea, emesis and anorexia as side effects of drug treatments, with special emphasis on chemotherapy. In this context, using a variety of behavioral paradigms, surgical, viral and, pharmacological approaches in multiple species, he is investigating the clinical relevance of the Growth Differentiation Factor 15 (GDF15) and the GLP-1 signaling.
Overall, his long-term research scope is to deeper understand the neuroendocrine systems regulating energy balance and how perturbations in these systems contribute to diseases. It is his hope that a better understanding of the neuronal circuits mediating anorexia and malaise will ultimately lead to significant improvements in patient care and quality of life by reducing the burden on patient well-being that accompanies chronic diseases and many treatments.
Relevant Publications: