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Retinal fatty acids of piglets fed docosahexaenoic and arachidonic acids from microbial sources
M C Craig-Schmidt1, K E Stieh, E L Lien
1Department of Nutrition and Food Science, Aubum University, Alabama 36849, USA.
Insights
Dietary supplementation with docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and arachidonic acid (AA) in neonatal pigs increased retinal phospholipid accretion. Phosphatidylcholine showed significant increases, while phosphatidylethanolamine was less responsive.
Area of Science:
- Nutritional Neuroscience
- Biochemistry
- Developmental Biology
Background:
- Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and arachidonic acid (AA) are crucial for infant visual and neural development.
- Human milk contains DHA and AA, but concentrations can vary.
- Neonatal pig models are used to study nutrient accretion relevant to human infants.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of dietary DHA and AA supplementation on fatty acid accretion in neonatal pig retinas.
- To determine if supplemental DHA and AA concentrations, exceeding those in human milk, influence retinal phospholipid composition.
- To assess potential competition between DHA and AA during incorporation into retinal phospholipids.
Main Methods:
- Neonatal piglets were fed one of four diets: standard, standard + DHA, standard + AA, or standard + DHA + AA for 25 days.
- Retinal phosphatidylcholine (PC) and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) fatty acid composition was analyzed.
- Statistical analysis was performed to determine significant differences in fatty acid levels.
Main Results:
- DHA supplementation significantly increased DHA levels in retinal PC by approximately twofold.
- AA supplementation increased AA levels in retinal PC by 1.3-1.4-fold.
- PE showed less responsiveness, with only the combined DHA + AA diet significantly increasing DHA levels.
Conclusions:
- Dietary DHA and AA supplementation effectively increases their accretion in retinal phosphatidylcholine in neonatal pigs.
- Phosphatidylethanolamine is less responsive to supplementation compared to phosphatidylcholine.
- No significant competition was observed between DHA and AA for incorporation into retinal phospholipids, supporting their co-supplementation.
Abstract:
Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n-3) and arachidonic acid (AA, 20:4n-6) serve important roles in perinatal visual and neural development. A neonatal pig model was used to determine if dietary supplementation with DHA and AA at slightly greater concentrations than normally found in human milk would influence fatty acid accretion in retina. One-day-old piglets were assigned to one of four diets (n = 5/group): (i) STD, standard diet containing fat similar to infant formula; (ii) STD + DHA, 0.7% of fatty acids as DHA; (iii) STD + AA, 0.9% as AA; and (iv) STD + BOTH, 0.8% as DHA plus 1.0% as AA. After 25 d, fatty acids in retina phosphatidylcholine (PC) and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) were determined. Supplementation with DHA resulted in approximately twofold increases (P < 0.05) in PC-DHA (4.88% in STD vs. 10.03% in STD + DHA and 9.47% in STD + BOTH). Similarly, AA supplementation increased PC-AA 1.3-1.4-fold (4.47% in STD vs. 6.19% in STD + AA and 5.70% in STD + BOTH). For PE, supplementation with either fatty acid or in combination resulted in no significant increases, except for a 1.2-fold increase in DHA for STD + BOTH (32.66%) vs. STD (28.38%). Thus, PC responded to dietary supplementation, with addition of DHA, AA, or BOTH, resulting in increases in respective fatty acids; PE was less responsive, with only STD + BOTH resulting in increased DHA. No significant competition between DHA and AA in incorporation into phospholipids was observed. In conclusion, consumption of a combination of DHA and AA by neonatal pigs supported accretion of DHA in retina phospholipids, while simultaneously supplying the AA necessary for membrane phospholipids and eicosanoid biosynthesis.