PUFAs Affect Eye Inflammation

DIJON, FranceAccording to a new French study, sSupplementation with polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) modulates fatty acid composition and prostaglandin (PG) production in the conjunctival epithelium, an important site of inflammation in dry eye syndrome. The results were published online ahead of print in Graefes Archive for Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology.

Researchers from Université de Bourgogne - AgroSup Dijon, Eye and Nutrition Research Group, treated Chang and IOBA-NHC conjunctival human cells with -linolenic acid (GLA) and/or eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) at 5, 10, 20, 30, 40, or 50 g/ml for 72 hours, then stimulated the cells with interferon-gamma (IFN-) for 48 hours. They monitored changes in the composition of neutral lipids and phospholipids were using gas chromatography, and measured PGE1 and PGE2 levels using enzyme immunoassay.

Results showed PUFA administered to the culture medium induced incorporation of these fatty acids and their metabolites in neutral lipids and phospholipids of the conjunctival cells. While stimulation with IFN- did not affect the fatty acid composition of neutral lipids and phospholipids, GLA supplementation did affectthe production of PGE1 and PGE2, which was not modified by EPA supplementation.  The researchers noted combined supplementation with EPA and GLA did not change the production of PGE1 but decreased the production of PGE2.