Timmermans Silke, Bogie Jeroen F J, Vanmierlo Tim, Lütjohann Dieter, Stinissen Piet, Hellings Niels, Hendriks Jerome J A
Biomedical Research Institute, School of Life Sciences, Hasselt University/Transnational University Limburg, Agoralaan Building C, B3590, Diepenbeek, Belgium,
J Neuroimmune Pharmacol. 2014 Mar;9(2):209-17. doi: 10.1007/s11481-013-9502-4. Epub 2013 Sep 26.
Epidemiological studies suggest a positive correlation between the incidence and severity of multiple sclerosis (MS) and the intake of fatty acids. It remains to be clarified whether high fat diet (HFD) indeed can exacerbate the disease pathology associated with MS and what the underlying mechanisms are. In this study, we determined the influence of HFD on the severity and pathology of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), an animal model of MS. Mice were fed either normal diet (ND) or HFD and subsequently induced with EAE. Immunohistochemical staining and real-time PCR were used to determine immune cell infiltration and inflammatory mediators in the central nervous system (CNS). Our data show that HFD increases immune cell infiltration and inflammatory mediator production in the CNS and thereby aggravates EAE. Moreover, our data demonstrate that activation of the renin angiotensin system (RAS) is associated with the HFD-mediated effects on EAE severity. These results show that HFD exacerbates an autoreactive immune response within the CNS. This indicates that diets containing excess fat have a significant influence on neuroinflammation in EAE, which may have important implications for the treatment and prevention of neuroinflammatory disorders.
流行病学研究表明，多发性硬化症（MS）的发病率和严重程度与脂肪酸摄入量之间存在正相关。高脂肪饮食（HFD）是否真的会加剧与MS相关的疾病病理以及潜在机制是什么，仍有待阐明。在本研究中，我们确定了HFD对实验性自身免疫性脑脊髓炎（EAE，一种MS动物模型）的严重程度和病理的影响。给小鼠喂食正常饮食（ND）或HFD，随后诱导其发生EAE。采用免疫组织化学染色和实时PCR来确定中枢神经系统（CNS）中的免疫细胞浸润和炎症介质。我们的数据表明，HFD会增加CNS中的免疫细胞浸润和炎症介质产生，从而加重EAE。此外，我们的数据证明肾素血管紧张素系统（RAS）的激活与HFD对EAE严重程度的影响有关。这些结果表明，HFD会加剧CNS内的自身反应性免疫反应。这表明含有过量脂肪的饮食对EAE中的神经炎症有显著影响，这可能对神经炎症性疾病的治疗和预防具有重要意义。
