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Maternal prenatal omega‐3 fatty acid supplementation attenuates hyperoxia‐induced apoptosis in the developing rat brain
Author(s) -
Tuzun Funda,
Kumral Abdullah,
Ozbal Seda,
Dilek Mustafa,
Tugyan Kazım,
Duman Nuray,
Ozkan Hasan
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
international journal of developmental neuroscience
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.761
H-Index - 88
eISSN - 1873-474X
pISSN - 0736-5748
DOI - 10.1016/j.ijdevneu.2012.01.007
Subject(s) - hyperoxia , docosahexaenoic acid , apoptosis , tunel assay , polyunsaturated fatty acid , eicosapentaenoic acid , endocrinology , medicine , room air distribution , andrology , biology , fatty acid , physiology , biochemistry , lung , physics , thermodynamics
Supraphysiologic amounts of oxygen negatively influences brain maturation and development. The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether maternal ω‐3 long‐chain polyunsaturated fatty acid (ω‐3 FA) supplementation during pregnancy protects the developing brain against hyperoxic injury. Thirty‐six rat pups from six different dams were divided into six groups according to the diet modifications and hyperoxia exposure. The groups were: a control group (standard diet + room air), a hyperoxia group (standard diet + 80% O 2 exposure), a hyperoxia + high‐dose ω‐3 FA‐supplemented group, a hyperoxia + low‐dose ω‐3 FA‐supplemented group, a room air + low‐dose ω‐3 FA‐supplemented + group, and a room air + high dose ω‐3 FA‐supplemented group. The ω‐3 FA's were supplemented as a mixture of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) from the second day of pregnancy until birth. Rat pups in the hyperoxic groups were exposed to 80% oxygen from birth until postnatal day 5 (P5). At P5, all animals were sacrificed. Neuronal cell death and apoptosis were evaluated by cell count, TUNEL, and active Caspase‐3 immunohistochemistry. Histopathological examination showed that maternally ω‐3 FA deficient diet and postnatal hyperoxia exposure were associated with significantly lower neuronal counts and significantly higher apoptotic cell death in the selected brain regions. Ω‐3 FA treatment significantly diminished apoptosis, in the selected brain regions, in a dose dependent manner. Our results suggest that the maternal ω‐3 FA supply may protect the developing brain against hyperoxic injury.