Dr Ivana Okić Djordjević, dr Aleksandra Jauković, dr Marijana Kovačić, Sanja Momčilović doktorand, Milena Živanović doktorand

Multiple myeloma (MM) is the hematologic malignancy and incurable clonal disease of the plasma cell that grows within the bone marrow (BM) causing destructive bone lesions. As disease of elderly, MM is associated with increased bone marrow adipose tissue (BMAT) that might provide supportive microenvironment for MM cell growth, survival and drug resistance. Since adipocytes were shown to support cancer cell growth by influencing cell mitochondrial activity and lipid metabolism, this project aims to decipher whether BM adipocytes (BMAd) population represents one of the key regulators of MM persistence by controlling fatty acid oxidation (FAO) in MM cells. To address this issue, we will determine the lipid profile of femoral bone marrow, as well as metabolic fitness of plasma and BMAT cells in MM patients. In parallel, lipid and mitochondria exchange at single-cell level will be analyzed in advanced cultures of BMAT and MM cells. Particularly, the role of Kisspeptin-1 receptor signaling in BMAT and MM fatty acid exchange will be explored.