Lust Cody Ac, Lau Jessi, Hillyer Lyn M, Mountjoy Margo, Robinson Lindsay A, Ma David Wl
Department of Human Health and Nutritional Sciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada.
Department of Family Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.
Curr Dev Nutr. 2025 May 27;9(6):107476. doi: 10.1016/j.cdnut.2025.107476. eCollection 2025 Jun.
Of the ∼40 million cases of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) documented globally each year, the majority are sustained during sports and recreational activities. Evidence has suggested that the use of nutritional supplementation, notably n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), can provide neuroprotective benefits.
This study sought to examine the dose-response of consuming an n-3 PUFA diet prior to an mTBI on recovery and functional performance measures in mice.
For 5 wk, male C57BL6/J mice were fed ad libitum on isocaloric diets high in n-3 PUFA (3N3), moderate n-3 PUFA (1N3), or n-6 PUFA (0N3) as a control. At 9-10 wk of age, mice were anesthetized in an induction chamber prior to receiving a mild brain injury induced using a weight-drop injury model. A one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with Tukey's post hoc analysis was used to assess between-group differences in functional recovery measures of righting reflex and time to seek) immediately after injury. A repeated measures ANOVA was conducted to determine the effect of diet groups and time on functional performance measures indicated by neurological severity score (NSS) 1, 4, 24, 48, 72, and 168 h (H) post-mTBI.
There were no significant differences in recovery measures; however, the 3N3 group demonstrated the fastest recovery post-mTBI and had significantly improved functional performance ( 0.05) compared with the 0N3 group determined by NSS testing. A one-way ANOVA with Tukey's post hoc indicated that the 3N3 group had significantly improved functional performance ( 0.05) at 4H post-mTBI compared with the 0N3 group.
Overall, these results show that dietary n-3 PUFA confer neuroprotective benefits in mice resulting in significantly improved functional outcomes. This work is relevant to clinical practitioners, athletes, and the general population who aim to support their neurological health through dietary or supplementary n-3 PUFA.
全球每年记录的约4000万例轻度创伤性脑损伤（mTBI）病例中，大多数是在体育和娱乐活动中发生的。有证据表明，使用营养补充剂，特别是n-3多不饱和脂肪酸（PUFA），可以提供神经保护益处。
本研究旨在探讨在mTBI之前食用n-3 PUFA饮食对小鼠恢复和功能表现指标的剂量反应。
雄性C57BL6/J小鼠自由采食等热量饮食5周，饮食中富含n-3 PUFA（3N3）、中度n-3 PUFA（1N3）或n-6 PUFA（0N3，作为对照）。在9至10周龄时，小鼠在诱导室中麻醉，然后使用重物坠落损伤模型诱导轻度脑损伤。采用单因素方差分析（ANOVA）和Tukey事后分析来评估损伤后立即恢复翻正反射和寻找时间等功能恢复指标的组间差异。进行重复测量方差分析以确定饮食组和时间对mTBI后1、4、24、48、72和168小时（h）由神经严重程度评分（NSS）表示的功能表现指标的影响。
恢复指标无显著差异；然而，3N3组在mTBI后恢复最快，与通过NSS测试确定的0N3组相比，功能表现显著改善（P<0.05）。单因素方差分析和Tukey事后分析表明，与0N3组相比，3N3组在mTBI后4小时功能表现显著改善（P<0.05）。
总体而言，这些结果表明饮食中的n-3 PUFA对小鼠具有神经保护益处，可显著改善功能结局。这项工作与临床医生、运动员以及旨在通过饮食或补充n-3 PUFA来支持神经健康的普通人群相关。
