Effect of a diet-induced n-3 PUFA depletion on cholinergic parameters in the rat hippocampus
Journal of Lipid Research. 2003-08-01; 44(8): 1545-1551
DOI: 10.1194/jlr.M300079-JLR200
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Aïd S(1), Vancassel S, Poumès-Ballihaut C, Chalon S, Guesnet P, Lavialle M.
Author information:
(1)INRA, Laboratoire de Nutrition et Sécurité Alimentaire, Jouy-en-Josas,
France.
Because brain membranes contain large amounts of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA,
22:6n-3), and as (n-3) PUFA dietary deficiency can lead to impaired attention,
learning, and memory performance in rodents, we have examined the influence of
an (n-3) PUFA-deprived diet on the central cholinergic neurotransmission system.
We have focused on several cholinergic neurochemical parameters in the frontal
cortex and hippocampus of rats fed an (n-3) PUFA-deficient diet, compared with
rats fed a control diet. The (n-3) PUFA deficiency resulted in changes in the
membrane phospholipid compositions of both brain regions, with a dramatic loss
(62-77%) of DHA. However, the cholinergic pathway was only modified in the
hippocampus and not in the frontal cortex. The basal acetylcholine (ACh) release
in the hippocampus of deficient rats was significantly (72%) higher than in
controls, whereas the KCl-induced release was lower (34%). The (n-3) PUFA
deprivation also caused a 10% reduction in muscarinic receptor binding. In
contrast, acetylcholinesterase activity and the vesicular ACh transporter in
both brain regions were unchanged. Thus, we evidenced that an (n-3)
PUFA-deficient diet can affect cholinergic neurotransmission, probably via
changes in the phospholipid PUFA composition.