Department of Psychiatry, Division of Bipolar Disorders Research, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH 45219, USA.
J Nutr. 2010 Apr;140(4):864-8. doi: 10.3945/jn.109.113233. Epub 2010 Feb 10.
Increasing evidence suggests that docosahexaenoic acid [DHA, 22:6(n-3)], the principal (n-3) fatty acid in brain gray matter, has neurotrophic and neuroprotective properties. Preliminary clinical evidence also suggests that the perinatal accrual, and the subsequent dietary maintenance of, cortical DHA is positively associated with cortical gray matter volumes. The pathophysiology of recurrent affective disorders, including unipolar and bipolar depression, is associated with (n-3) fatty acid deficiency, DHA deficits, impaired astrocyte mediated vascular coupling, neuronal shrinkage, and reductions in gray matter volume in the prefrontal cortex (PFC). Preclinical studies have also observed neuronal shrinkage and indices of astrocyte pathology in the DHA-deficient rat brain. Together, this body of evidence supports the proposition that DHA deficiency increases vulnerability to neuronal atrophy in the PFC of patients with affective disorders. Because projections from the PFC modulate multiple limbic structures involved in affective regulation, this represents one plausible mechanism by which (n-3) fatty acid deficiency may increase vulnerability to recurrent affective disorders.
越来越多的证据表明，二十二碳六烯酸[DHA，22:6(n-3)]是脑灰质中主要的(n-3)脂肪酸，具有神经营养和神经保护作用。初步临床证据还表明，围产期皮质 DHA 的积累，以及随后的饮食维持，与皮质灰质体积呈正相关。复发性情感障碍的病理生理学，包括单相和双相抑郁症，与(n-3)脂肪酸缺乏、DHA 缺乏、星形胶质细胞介导的血管偶联受损、神经元萎缩以及前额叶皮质（PFC）灰质体积减少有关。临床前研究还观察到 DHA 缺乏大鼠大脑中的神经元萎缩和星形胶质细胞病理的指标。总之，这一证据支持这样一种观点，即 DHA 缺乏会增加情感障碍患者 PFC 中神经元萎缩的易感性。由于来自 PFC 的投射调节参与情感调节的多个边缘结构，这代表了(n-3)脂肪酸缺乏可能增加复发性情感障碍易感性的一种合理机制。
