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Effect of 9,12-Octadecadiynoic Acid on Neurobehavioral Development in Caenorhabditis elegans
Tun-Chieh Chen1,2,3, How-Ran Chao4,5,6, Ching-Ying Wu7,8
1Department of Internal Medicine, Kaohsiung Municipal Ta-Tung Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University, No. 68, Jhonghua 3rd Rd, Cianjin District, Kaohsiung 80145, Taiwan.
Insights
9,12-octadecadiynoic acid in breast milk promotes infant neurodevelopment. Studies in C. elegans show this fatty acid regulates motor skills and foraging, but high doses impair these functions and reduce lifespan.
Area of Science:
- Human milk lipidomics
- Neurodevelopmental biology
- Model organism research
Background:
- Human breast milk lipids are vital for infant brain development, growth, and health.
- Understanding specific lipid roles in neurodevelopment is crucial for optimizing infant health outcomes.
- Adaptive behavioral development is key for managing environmental stress in infants.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the correlation between human breast milk lipids and infant neurodevelopment.
- To elucidate the biological function of 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid in neurobehavioral development using a model organism.
- To determine the dose-dependent effects of 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid on neurobehavior and longevity.
Main Methods:
- Multivariate analyses combining lipidomics and Bayley-III scales in infants.
- Utilizing Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) as a model for neurobehavioral studies.
- Supplementation experiments with varying concentrations of 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid in C. elegans larvae.
Main Results:
- A significant positive correlation was found between 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid and infant adaptive behavioral development.
- Low-dose (0.1 μM) 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid enhanced C. elegans locomotive and foraging abilities via the serotonin transporter mod-1.
- High-dose (>1 μM) 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid impaired C. elegans neurobehavior, reduced serotonin synthesis, and decreased longevity.
Conclusions:
- 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid plays a significant role in governing adaptive behavioral development.
- The effects of 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid on neurobehavior are concentration-dependent.
- This study highlights the complex role of specific fatty acids in neurodevelopment and neuronal function.
Abstract:
Human breast milk lipids have major beneficial effects: they promote infant early brain development, growth and health. To identify the relationship between human breast milk lipids and infant neurodevelopment, multivariate analyses that combined lipidomics and psychological Bayley-III scales evaluation were utilized. We identified that 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid has a significantly positive correlation with infant adaptive behavioral development, which is a crucial neurodevelopment to manage risk from environmental stress. To further clarify the biological function of 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid in regulating neurodevelopment, Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) was used as a model to investigate the effect of 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid on neurobehavioral development. Supplementation with 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid from the L1 to L4 stage in larvae affected locomotive behaviors and foraging ability that were not socially interactive, implying that 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid is involved in regulating the serotonergic neuronal ability. We found that supplementary 0.1 μM 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid accelerated the locomotive ability and foraging ability via increasing the expression of serotonin transporter mod-1. Antioxidant defense genes, sod-1, sod-3 and cyp-35A2 are involved in 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid-induced motor neuronal activity. Nevertheless, supplementary 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid at concentrations above 1 μM significantly attenuated locomotive behaviors, foraging ability, serotonin synthesis, serotonin-related gene expressions and stress-related gene expression, resulting in the decreased longevity of worms in the experiment. In conclusion, our study demonstrates the biological function of 9,12-octadecadiynoic acid in governing adaptive behavioral development.
