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PubMed1994

Effect of dietary fats on cholesterol metabolism and eicosanoid production in hamsters fed undigested fraction of soybean protein.

The undigested fraction of soybean protein (UDF) exerts a markedly greater hypocholesterolemic effect than soybean protein itself in rats. The present study was undertaken to confirm the effect in hamsters, a more appropriate animal model for human cholesterol metabolism. Hamsters were given diets containing UDF at a nitrogen level equivalent to the 20% casein diet. Dietary fats, at the 10% level, were perilla oil and safflower oil. There was apparently no increase in the serum and liver cholesterol levels in both groups of animals cholesterol-enriched diets that had been fed for 38 days. Fecal excretion of neutral and acidic steroid tended to be higher in the perilla oil group than in the safflower oil group. The perilla oil group significantly increased 20:5n-3 in liver phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylethanolamine accompanying a decrease in 20: 4n-6. Such changes were not so evident in liver phosphatidylinositol. The production of leukotriene B4 and the concentration of prostaglandin E2 in the spleen were higher in the safflower oil group than in the perilla oil group. Thus, the hypocholesterolemic effect of the undigested fraction of soybean protein was apparently reproduced even in hamsters. Dietary fat-induced changes in lipid parameters in hamsters resembled those observed in rats.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

Interactions of dietary fats and proteins on fatty acid composition of immune cells and LTB4 production by peritoneal exudate cells of rats.

The interaction of dietary fats and proteins on lipid parameters of rats was studied using safflower oil (linoleic acid-rich), borage oil (gamma-linolenic acid-rich) or perilla oil (alpha-linolenic acid-rich) in combination with casein or soybean protein. The experiment was focused on the fatty acid composition of immune cells and the leukotriene B4 production by peritoneal exudate cells. Serum total cholesterol, triglyceride, and phospholipid levels were low in perilla oil-fed or soybean protein-fed rats. Fatty acid compositions of serum and liver phospholipids reflected those of dietary fats. However, feeding borage oil resulted in a marked increase in the proportion of dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid in phospholipids of peritoneal exudate cells, spleen lymphocytes, and mesenteric lymph node lymphocytes in relation to those of liver and serum. It is suggested that activities of metabolic n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids are different between immune and other tissues. In addition, the magnitude of the reduction of the proportion of linoleic acid of perilla oil in immune cells was considerably more moderate than serum and liver, indicating a different degree of interference of alpha-linolenic acid with linoleic acid metabolism. Leukotriene release from peritoneal exudate cells was in the order of safflower oil > borage oil > perilla oil groups as reflecting the proportion of arachidonic acid, and tended to be lower in soybean protein-fed groups. These suggest an anti-inflammatory property of gamma-linolenic acid as well as alpha-linolenic acid tended to be strengthened when they were combined with soybean protein than with casein.

Animals↗
PubMed1987

Effect of dietary alpha-linolenate/linoleate balance on brain lipid compositions and learning ability of rats.

Spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) and normotensive control, Wistar/Kyoto (WKY) rats through two generations were fed a semipurified diet supplemented either with safflower oil (rich in linoleate) or with perilla oil (rich in alpha-linolenate). The cerebral lipid contents and phospholipid compositions did not differ between the two dietary groups of SHR rats. There were also no differences in the unsaturated/saturated ratios of individual phospholipids or the proportions of plasma-logens. However, the proportions of (n-3) and (n-6) fatty acids were significantly different. Decreases in the proportions of docosahexaenoate [22:6 (n-3)] in phosphatidylethanolamine and phosphatidylserine in the safflower oil group were compensated for with increases in the proportions of docosatetraenoic [22:4 (n-6)] and docosapentaenoic [22:5 (n-6)] acids as compared with the perilla oil group. These differences in phospholipid acyl chains were much smaller than the difference in the proportions of linoleate and alpha-linolenate of the diets. In a brightness-discrimination learning test, the total number of responses to the positive and negative stimuli were less in the groups fed perilla oil. However, the alpha-linolenate-deficient group took longer to decrease the frequency of R- responses and therefore longer to learn the discrimination. Consequently, the correct response ratios were higher in the perilla oil groups than in the safflower oil groups. Thus, the dietary alpha-linolenate/linoleate balance influenced the (n-3)/(n-6) balance of polyenoic fatty acids differently among brain phospholipids.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Effect of the dietary alpha-linolenate/linoleate balance on lipid compositions and learning ability of rats. II. Discrimination process, extinction process, and glycolipid compositions.

Donryu strain rats through two generations were fed semi-purified diets supplemented with safflower seed oil (rich in linoleic acid) or with perilla seed oil (rich in alpha-linolenic acid), or a conventional laboratory chow (normal control diet). Brightness-discrimination learning ability was determined to be the highest in the perilla oil-fed group, followed by the normal group, and then by the safflower group, extending our earlier observation in a different strain of rat that alpha-linolenic acid is a factor in maintaining high learning ability (Yamamoto, N., M. Saitoh, A. Moriuchi, M. Nomura, and H. Okuyama. 1987. J. Lipid Res. 28: 144-151). After the brightness-discrimination learning test was administered, extinction of learning was measured. The time required for extinction was significantly longer in the safflower group than in either the perilla group or the normal diet group. Thus, the dietary alpha-linolenate/linoleate balance affected both the learning and the extinction of learning. The glycolipids of the cerebrum, cerebellum, and olfactory lobe were analyzed. Although the fatty acid compositions of the sulfatide and gangliosides were significantly different in the three parts of the brain, relatively little difference was observed in the fatty acids of glycolipids between the safflower group and the perilla group, suggesting that gross changes in brain glycolipids are not responsible for the differences in learning abilities between these dietary groups.

Animals↗
PubMed2002

Chemoprevention of heterocyclic amine-induced mammary carcinogenesis in rats.

2-Amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP) is one of the most prevalent carcinogenic heterocyclic amines in the environment, targeting the colon, prostate, pancreas, and mammary gland in rodents. Chemopreventive effects of synthetic and naturally occurring compounds on PhIP-induced rat mammary carcinogenesis were investigated in a series of experiments. In a PhIP feeding model, groups of 20-21 female F344 rats each, were treated with 0.02% PhIP alone or PhIP plus 0.5% 1-O-hexyl-2,3,5-trimethylhydroquinone (HTHQ), 1% green tea catechins, 1% alpha-tocopherol, 0.1% ellagic acid, or 1% chlorophyllin, each in the diet, or 0.1% caffeine in drinking water for 52 weeks. To assess the mechanism of HTHQ and caffeine inhibition of PhIP-induced carcinogenesis, effects of these compound on the in vitro metabolic activation of PhIP were examined in the presence of S9 mix. In the next series of experiments, the PhIP intragastric dose model was applied to allow separate investigation of the effects of chemicals during the initiation and postinitiation periods. In these experiments, female Sprague-Dawley rats were given eight intragastric doses of 100 mg/kg body weight during the first 4-8 weeks for initiation. Either during initiation or after initiation, or only after initiation, animals were treated with either corn or perilla oil at doses of 5 and 20%, conjugated fatty acid derived from safflower oil (CFA-S) or perilla oil (CFA-P) at a dose of 1%, arctiin at doses of 0.02 and 0.2% in the diet, or sodium nitrite (NaNO(2)) at a dose of 0.2% in drinking water. In the PhIP feeding model, administration of PhIP alone for 52 weeks induced adenocarcinomas in 40% of rats, but the incidence was remarkably reduced to 5% by the simultaneous treatment with 0.5% HTHQ, a strong lipophilic phenolic antioxidant, or to 10% by 0.1% caffeine. Administration of 1% chlorophyllin exerted similar, albeit weaker, effects. alpha-Tocopherol at a dose of 0.5% only reduced the multiplicity of carcinomas, and 1% green tea catechins only the mean size of mammary tumors. In a metabolic activation study of PhIP, HTHQ and caffeine clearly inhibited the formation of metabolites. In the PhIP gastric dose model, among the naturally occurring compounds examined, a plant lignan arctiin, perilla oil, which contains a large amount of n-6 alpha-linolenic acid, and CFA-S or CFA-P inhibited mammary tumor development, particularly in the postinitiation period, although a clear dose response was not observed. Treatment with 0.2% NaNO(2) in the initiation period was found to lower the volume of mammary tumors. The present results indicate that a number of compounds may be candidate chemopreventive agents against PhIP-induced mammary carcinogenesis, acting through different mechanisms and depending on the stage of carcinogenesis.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Unusual effects of some vegetable oils on the survival time of stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats.

Preliminary experiments have shown that a diet containing 10% rapeseed oil (low-erucic acid) markedly shortens the survival time of stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive (SHRSP) rats under 1% NaCl loading as compared with diets containing perilla oil or soybean oil. High-oleate safflower oil and high-oleate sunflower oil were found to have survival time-shortening activities comparable to that of rapeseed oil; olive oil had slightly less activity. A mixture was made of soybean oil, perilla oil, and triolein partially purified from high-oleate sunflower oil to adjust the fatty acid composition to that of rapeseed oil. The survival time of this triolein/mixed oil group was between those of the rapeseed oil and soybean oil groups. When 1% NaCl was replaced with tap water, the survival time was prolonged by approximately 80%. Under these conditions, the rapeseed oil and evening primrose oil shortened the survival time by approximately 40% as compared with n-3 fatty acid-rich perilla and fish oil; lard, soybean oil, and safflower oil with relatively high n-6/n-3 ratios shortened the survival time by roughly 10%. The observed unusual survival time-shortening activities of some vegetable oils (rapeseed, high-oleate safflower, high-oleate sunflower, olive, and evening primrose oil) may not be due to their unique fatty acid compositions, but these results suggest that these vegetable oils contain factor(s) which are detrimental to SHRSP rats.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

High-fat diet-induced hyperglycemia and obesity in mice: differential effects of dietary oils.

Mice fed a high-fat diet develop hyperglycemia and obesity. Using non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) model mice, we investigated the effects of seven different dietary oils on glucose metabolism: palm oil, which contains mainly 45% palmitic acid (16:0) and 40% oleic acid (18:1); lard oil, 24% palmitic and 44% oleic acid; rapeseed oil, 59% oleic and 20% linoleic acid (18:2); soybean oil, 24% oleic and 54% linoleic acid; safflower oil, 76% linoleic acid; perilla oil, 58% alpha-linolenic acid; and tuna fish oil, 7% eicosapentaenoic acid and 23% docosahexaenoic acid. C57BL/6J mice received each as a high-fat diet (60% of total calories) for 19 weeks (n = 6 to 11 per group). After 19 weeks of feeding, body weight induced by the diets was in the following order: soybean > palm > or = lard > or = rapeseed > or = safflower > or = perilla > fish oil. Glucose levels 30 minutes after a glucose load were highest for safflower oil (approximately 21.5 mmol/L), modest for rapeseed oil, soybean oil, and lard (approximately 17.6 mmol/L), mild for perilla, fish, and palm oil (approximately 13.8 mmol/L), and minimal for high-carbohydrate meals (approximately 10.4 mmol/L). Only palm oil-fed mice showed fasting hyperinsulinemia (P < .001). By stepwise multiple regression analysis, body weight (or white adipose tissue [WAT] weight) and intake of linoleic acid (or n-3/n-6 ratio) were chosen as independent variables to affect glucose tolerance. By univariate analysis, the linoleic acid intake had a positive correlation with blood glucose level (r = .83, P = .02) but not with obesity (r = .46, P = .30). These data indicate that (1) fasting blood insulin levels vary among fat subtypes, and a higher fasting blood insulin level in palm oil-fed mice may explain their better glycemic control irrespective of their marked obesity; (2) a favorable glucose response induced by fish oil feeding may be mediated by a decrease of body weight; and (3) obesity and a higher intake of linoleic acid are independent risk factors for dysregulation of glucose tolerance.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

In-vitro and in-vivo anti-Trichophyton activity of essential oils by vapour contact.

The minimum inhibitory doses (MIDs) of essential oils by vapour contact to inhibit the growth of Trichophyton mentagrophytes and Trichophyton rubrum on agar medium were determined using airtight boxes. Among seven essential oils examined, cinnamon bark oil showed the least MID, followed by lemongrass, thyme and perilla oils. Lavender and tea tree oils showed moderate MID, and citron oil showed the highest MID, being 320 times higher than that of cinnamon bark oil. The MID values were less than the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values determined by agar dilution assay. Furthermore, the minimum agar concentration (MAC) of essential oils absorbed from vapour was determined at the time of MID determination as the second antifungal measure. The MAC value by vapour contact was 1.4 to 4.7 times less than the MAC remaining in the agar at the time of MIC determination by agar dilution assay. Using selected essential oils, the anti-Trichophyton activity by vapour contact was examined in more detail. Lemongrass, thyme and perilla oils killed the conidia, inhibited germination and hyphal elongation at 1-4 micrograms ml-1 air, whereas lavender oil was effective at 40-160 micrograms ml-1 air. The in-vivo efficacy of thyme and perilla oils by vapour contact was shown against an experimental tinea pedis in guinea pigs infected with T. mentagrophytes. These results indicated potent anti-Trichophyton action of essential oils by vapour contact.

Agar↗
PubMed2002

The role of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in brain: modulation of rat brain gene expression by dietary n-3 fatty acids.

Rats were fed either a high linolenic acid (perilla oil) or high eicosapentaenoic + docosahexaenoic acid (fish oil) diet (8%), and the fatty acid and molecular species composition of ethanolamine phosphoglycerides was determined. Gene expression pattern resulting from the feeding of n-3 fatty acids also was studied. Perilla oil feeding, in contrast to fish oil feeding, was not reflected in total fatty acid composition of ethanolamine phosphoglycerides. Levels of the alkenylacyl subclass of ethanolamine phosphoglycerides increased in response to feeding. Similarly, levels of diacyl phosphatidylethanolamine molecular species containing docosahexaenoic acid (18:0/22:6) were higher in perilla-fed or fish oil-fed rat brains whereas those in ethanolamine plasmalogens remained unchanged. Because plasmalogen levels in the brains of rats fed a n-3 fatty acid-enriched diet increased, it is plausible, however, that docosahexaenoic acid taken up from the food or formed from linolenic acid was deposited in this phospholipid subclass. Using cDNA microarrays, 55 genes were found to be overexpressed and 47 were suppressed relative to controls by both dietary regimens. The altered genes included those controlling synaptic plasticity, cytosceleton and membrane association, signal transduction, ion channel formation, energy metabolism, and regulatory proteins. This effect seems to be independent of the chain length of fatty acids, but the n-3 structure appears to be important. Because n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids have been shown to play an important role in maintaining normal mental functions and docosahexaenoic acid-containing ethanolamine phosphoglyceride (18:0/22:6) molecular species accumulated in response to n-3 fatty acid feeding, a casual relationship between the two events can be surmised.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

Effects of an oriental herbal medicine, "Saiboku-to", and its constituent herbs on Compound 48/80-induced histamine release from peritoneal mast cells in rats.

Effects of a traditional oriental herbal medicine, "Saiboku-to" and its constituent herbs on Compound 48/80-induced histamine release from peritoneal mast cells in rats were investigated. Saiboku-to inhibited Compound 48/80-induced degranulation of and histamine release from the mast cells, suggesting that Saiboku-to not only possesses anti-histamine release effect from mast cells, but also contains active herbs with this effect. Significant inhibitions were found in 4 of 10 constituent herbs of Saiboku-to: Magnoliae Cortex, Perillae Herba, Bupleuri Radix and Hoelen. In the dose-response curves of the four herbs, the logarithmic linearity was observed for each herb, and 50% inhibitory concentration, the IC50 values, were calculated to be 56.8 microg/ml for Magnoliae Cortex, 175.8 microl/ml for Perillae Herba, 356.6 microg/ml for Bupleuri Radix, and 595.8 microg/ml for Hoelen. One mg/ml of Saiboku-to showing 75% inhibition of Compound 48/80-induced histamine release level from mast cells contains 88.5 microg of Magnoliae Cortex (it was estimated from the dose-response curve that this dose inhibits 62.68% of the Compound 48/80-induced histamine release level), 58.8 microg of Perillae Herba (21% inhibition), 205.9 microg of Bupleuri Radix (35.24% inhibition), and 147.1 microg of Hoelen (11.15% inhibition). From these results, it is suggested that the anti-histamine release effect of Saiboku-to, which contains 10 herbs, may be due mainly to the effect of Magnoliae Cortex and the synergism of the 3 other herbs.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Reamed intramedullary femoral nailing after induction of an "ARDS-like" state in sheep: effect on clinically applicable markers of pulmonary function.

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: At present, the optimal treatment for appropriately resuscitated, multiply injured patients includes fixation of long bone fractures within twenty-four hours of injury. This management approach has been shown to decrease the incidence of pulmonary complications, multiple organ failure, and death. Some investigators have hypothesized that acute reamed intramedullary nailing of the femur (RIMNF) may result in pulmonary dysfunction as a result of the pulmonary fat embolization generated during this procedure. Patients with concomitant thoracic trauma may be at particular risk for this potentially severe complication. In an attempt to determine whether RIMNF can be safely carried out regardless of the severity of a pulmonary injury, we monitored the pulmonary effects of RIMNF in sheep in which an acute respiratory disorder (ARDS)-like state had been induced. Our hypothesis was that, if the pulmonary fat embolization that occurs as a result of RIMNF has a clinically significant effect, it would be detectable in an animal model in which a severe lung injury had been induced prior to the start of RIMNF. STUDY DESIGN: This was an acute experimental procedure performed on yearling sheep. METHODS: Reamed intramedullary nailing of the femur was performed in two groups of instrumented sheep. The first group had no pulmonary injuries. The second group had an ARDS-like state induced by intravenous infusion of perilla ketone prior to RIMNF. Perilla ketone increases pulmonary microvascular permeability without changing filling pressures and is used to induce a model of human ARDS. Hemodynamic and oximetric parameters were measured or calculated, as was pulmonary dynamic compliance during the experiment. RESULTS: Infusion of perilla ketone caused a significant pulmonary injury. RIMNF caused no additional significant effect on intrapulmonary shunt, mixed venous oxygen saturation, or dynamic compliance, which are clinically used to assess the severity of pulmonary dysfunction in injured patients. CONCLUSIONS: The fat embolization that occurs during RIMNF in an appropriately resuscitated sheep has no clinically significant effect on pulmonary function, even in the setting of a severe pulmonary dysfunction.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Reducing cell membrane n-6 fatty acids attenuate mucosal damage in food-sensitive enteropathy in mice.

Mucosal damage is commonly observed in food-sensitive enteropathy in infants, and the generation of leukotrienes is involved in the pathogenesis of this enteropathy. Because supplementing n-3 fatty acids is known to modify the production of leukotrienes, we investigated whether a change of dietary fatty acid composition affects leukotriene synthesis and food hypersensitivity reactions in the intestine by using a mouse model of food-sensitive enteropathy. The model was prepared by feeding ovalbumin to BALB/c mice after intraperitoneal injection of cyclophosphamide. Diets were prepared from soybean oil (control), perilla oil, lard, corn oil, and 0.125 volume of corn oil (low fat diet) and given to mice for 4 wk. Villous heights, crypt depths, leukotriene B4 and C4 production in the intestine were measured. Crypt hyperplasia and villous atrophy were severer in the corn oil-fed group than those of control group, whereas mucosal damage in the perilla oil and low fat diet groups was minimal. In the corn oil-fed group, red blood cell membrane levels of n-3 fatty acids were lower than the control, and the synthesis of leukotrienes was highest among all groups. In the perilla oil and low fat diet groups, n-6 fatty acids were lower than those of control group and leukotriene production was significantly suppressed. These results indicate that reducing cell membrane levels of n-6 fatty acids by feeding less n-6 fatty acids or supplementing n-3 fatty acids, is important to suppress leukotriene biosynthesis for prevention from mucosal damage in food-sensitive enteropathy.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Minimum requirements of n-3 and n-6 essential fatty acids for the function of the central nervous system and for the prevention of chronic disease.

General behavioral patterns of rats or mice fed 5 wt% safflower oil (75% linoleate [n-6] and less than 0.1% alpha-linolenate [n-3]) for two generations were significantly different from those of animals fed 5 wt% perilla oil (15% n-6 and 55% n-3). Also, brightness-discrimination learning ability and retinal function were higher in the perilla group than in the group fed 5 wt% soybean oil (53% n-6 and 4.7% n-3) or safflower oil, indicating that the requirement of n-3 for the maximum responses of the nervous system is above 0.6 en% when there is 6.8 en% linoleate n-6. Perilla oil has been found to be beneficial for the suppression of carcinogenesis, allergic hyperreactivity, thrombotic tendency, apoplexy, hypertension, and aging in animals, as compared with soybean oil and safflower oil. These results are against a lipid peroxide theory of aging, carcinogenesis, and chronic diseases. Animal experiments and epidemiological studies lead to a recommendation that the intake of n-6 should be decreased to as low as 2-4 en% and that of n-3 be increased to levels higher than linoleate n-6 for the prevention of chronic diseases prevailing in the industrialized countries.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Suppression of fatty acid synthase by dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids is mediated by fat itself, not by peroxidative mechanism.

This study examined the effect of dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) that were supplemented with vitamin E on lipid peroxidation, glutathione-dependent detoxifying enzyme system activity, and lipogenic fatty acid synthase (FAS) expression in rat liver. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were fed semipurified diets containing either 1% (w/w) corn oil or 10% each of beef tallow, corn oil, perilla oil, and fish oil for 4 wk. Alpha-tocopherol was supplemented in perilla oil (0.015%) and fish oil (0.019%). Hepatic thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, an estimate of lipid peroxidation, were not significantly different among the dietary groups. The glutathione peroxidase, glutathione reductase, and glutathione S-transferase activities were all elevated by the polyunsaturated fats, especially fish oil. The activity of FAS was reduced in the polyunsaturated fat-fed groups in the order of fish oil, perilla oil, and corn oil. The mRNA contents decreased in rats that were fed the 10% fat diets, particularly polyunsaturated fats, compared with the rats that were fed the 1% corn oil diet. Similarly, the inhibitory effect was the greatest in fish oil. These results suggest that lipid peroxidation can be minimized by vitamin E; PUFA in itself has a suppressive effect on lipogenic enzyme.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Unsaturated fatty acid feeding prevents the development of acute hepatitis in Long-Evans cinnamon (LEC) rats.

To investigate the effects of dietary alpha-linolenic acid (18:3, n-3; alpha-LNA) and linoleic acid (18:2, n-6; LA) on the development of hereditary hepatitis, we compared incidences and grades of acute hepatitis between the Long-Evans cinnamon (LEC) rats fed with safflower oil-supplemented diet and perilla oil-supplemented diet. Both safflower and perilla oil supplemented diets reduced the incidence of hepatitis and significantly prolonged its onset as compared to the non-supplemented conventional diet. No significant difference was observed between safflower and perilla oil diets in the rats of incidence of hepatitis. At the age of 16 weeks, just before the onset of hepatitis, serum levels of transaminase (AST, ALT) and concentration of copper in rats fed with both test diets were significantly reduced as compared with that of rats fed alpha-linolenate and linoleate have an inhibitory effect on the development of hepatitis in LEC rats due to the prevention of serum copper elevation.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed2005

Effects of volatile constituents of a rosemary extract on allergic airway inflammation related to house dust mite allergen in mice.

Perilla leaf extract is known to have anti-inflammatory properties. Recently, we have demonstrated that rosmarinic acid, a polyphenolic liquid component in perilla, inhibits the allergic airway inflammation induced by house dust mites (HDMs) in vivo. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of intratracheal (i.t.) exposure to volatile constituents of a rosemary extract (VR), gaseous components in perilla, on a murine model of allergic asthma induced by HDM. C3H/HeN mice were treated 7 times weekly with i.t. exposure. The HDM allergen challenge elicited a pulmonary eosinophilic inflammation accompanied by an increase in the lung expression of interleukin (IL)-5, IL-13, and eotaxin. VR inhibited increases in the number of eosinophils, neutrophils, and mononuclear cells around the airways and those in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. VR exposure also significantly suppressed the expression of IL-13 enhanced by HDM allergen. These results suggest that i.t. exposure to VR can, at least partially, prevent allergic airway inflammation induced by HDM. The preventive effect is associated with inhibition of the enhanced local expression of IL-13.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Effect of dietary alpha-linolenate on platelet-activating factor production in rat peritoneal polymorphonuclear leukocytes.

The effects of dietary alpha-linolenate (18:3, n-3) and linoleate (18:2, n-6) on platelet-activating factor (PAF) production were examined. Rats were fed an alpha-linolenic acid-rich (perilla oil) diet or a linoleic acid-rich (safflower oil) diet for 6 wk, and polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN) were elicited by peritoneal injection of casein. The overall phospholipid content and composition as well as the subclass distribution of choline and ethanolamine glycerophospholipids in PMN were not altered by these diets. However, with the perilla oil diet their content of a putative precursor of PAF, 1-alkyl-2-arachidonoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine was approximately 50% of that with safflower oil diet. On exposure to various concentrations of FMLP, PAF formation by PMN in the perilla oil group was less than 50% of that by PMN in the safflower oil group. A larger difference in PAF productions by PMN in the two dietary groups was observed on their stimulation with calcium ionophore A23187. These results demonstrate that PAF production is modulated in some as yet unknown way by changing the alpha-linolenate/linoleate balance of the diet.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Gene expression and molecular composition of phospholipids in rat brain in relation to dietary n-6 to n-3 fatty acid ratio.

Rats were fed from conception till adulthood either with normal rat chow with a linoleic (LA) to linolenic acid (LNA) ratio of 8.2:1 or a rat chow supplemented with a mixture of perilla and soy bean oil giving a ratio of LA to LNA of 4.7:1. Fat content of the feed was 5%. Fatty acid and molecular species composition of ethanolamine phosphoglyceride was determined. Effect of this diet on gene expression was also studied. There was an accumulation of docosahexaenoic (DHA) and arachidonic acids (AA) in brains of the experimental animals. Changes in the ratio sn-1 saturated, sn-2 docosahexaenoic to sn-1 monounsaturated, sn-2 docosahexaenoic were observed. Twenty genes were found overexpressed in response to the 4.7:1 mixture diet and four were found down-regulated compared to normal rat chow. Among them were the genes related to energy household, lipid metabolism and respiration. The degree of up-regulation exceeded that observed with perilla with a ratio of LA to LNA 8.2:1 [Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 99 (2002) 2619]. It was concluded that brain sensitively reacts to the fatty acid composition of the diet. It was suggested that alteration in membrane architecture and function coupled with alterations in gene expression profiles may contribute to the observed beneficial impact of n-3 type polyunsaturated fatty acids on cognitive functions.

Animals↗