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n‐3 PUFA Supplementation Alters Retinal Very‐Long‐Chain‐PUFA Levels and Ratios in Diabetic Animal Models
Author(s) -
Gorusupudi Aruna,
Chang FuYen,
Nelson Kelly,
Hageman Gregory S.,
Bernstein Paul S.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
molecular nutrition and food research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.495
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1613-4133
pISSN - 1613-4125
DOI - 10.1002/mnfr.201801058
Subject(s) - long chain , retinal , polyunsaturated fatty acid , medicine , diabetes mellitus , endocrinology , biology , chemistry , ophthalmology , biochemistry , fatty acid , polymer science
Scope Long‐chain (LC)‐PUFAs act as precursors for the special class of retinal lipids known as very‐long‐chain (VLC)‐PUFAs and the effect of diabetes on retinal VLC‐PUFA levels is unexplored. In order to understand the supplemental effect of omega‐3 (n‐3) LC‐PUFAs on decreasing levels of VLC‐PUFAs due to diabetes, Nile rats, which develop diabetes spontaneously, and Akita mouse, a genetic diabetes model, are chosen. Methods and results Human retinal punches from donors are collected from an eye bank; lipids are extracted and analyzed to study the alterations in VLC‐PUFAs and their omega‐3/omega‐6 (n‐3/n‐6) ratios. Nile rats are fed a high‐fat diet to induce hyperglycemia, and then an n‐3 PUFA‐rich diet is fed to the experimental group for 2 months. Diabetic male Akita mice and WT mice are fed with 5% fish‐oil mixed in with their chow for 2 months to observe the effect of n‐3 PUFAs. Results indicate that VLC‐PUFA levels are lower in human diabetic and retinopathic retinal punches compared to age‐matched controls. With supplementation of n‐3 PUFAs, there is a significant increase in n‐3/n‐6 VLC‐PUFA ratios in both animal models compared to diabetic controls. Conclusion Dietary supplementation with n‐3 LC‐PUFAs helps to prevent progression of diabetes and associated retinopathy.