Cod liver oil inhibits neutrophil and monocyte chemotaxis in healthy males

Epidemiological evidence suggests a reduced rate of chronic inflammatory diseases and ischaemic heart disease in populations with a high consumption of fish. This has been ascribed to the high content in sea food of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), belonging to the n - 3 family. We have studied neutrophil and monocyte chemotaxis in 12 healthy males before and after 6 weeks supplementation with cod liver oil, corresponding to 5.3 g n - 3 PUFAs daily. Neutrophil and monocyte chemotaxis were investigated using the under agarose technique with N-formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine (N-FMLP) and autologous serum as chemoattractants. Neutrophil chemotaxis towards both chemoattractants and monocyte chemotaxis towards N-FMLP were significantly reduced after supplementation with cod liver oil.