Pawlosky R J, Denkins Y, Ward G, Salem N
Laboratory of Membrane Biochemistry and Biophysics, National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse, Rockville, MD 20852, USA.
Am J Clin Nutr. 1997 Feb;65(2):465-72. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/65.2.465.
A study was carried out in domestic felines to determine whether corn oil-based maternal diets are an adequate source of essential fatty acids to support normal accumulation of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids in the brains and retinas of offspring and whether these diets have any subsequent effect on visual function. Female domestic felines were acclimated to one of six different defined diets 1 mo before mating and maintained on the diets throughout pregnancy and lactation. Four diets contained only corn and hydrogenated coconut oils as their source of fat in ratios of 1:9, 3:7, 6:4, and 9:1, respectively. Two reference diets also contained the long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids arachidonate (20:4n-6) and docosahexaenoate (22:6n-3). When the offspring were 8 wk old, electroretinograms were obtained and the a- and b-wave implicit times were determined. The results showed that animals raised in litters in which the maternal diets were devoid of 20:4n-6 and 22:6n-3 had an increase in a- and b-wave implicit times compared with the controls. In the rod outer segments and brains of these animals, there were lower amounts of 22:6n-3 and higher amounts of long-chain n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids compared with control animals. These findings showed that although corn oil-based diets were capable of maintaining 20:4n-6 concentrations in the developing brain and retina, only those diets containing 22:6n-3 could support a high accumulation of docosahexaenoic acid in these tissues. Moreover, low amounts of 22:5n-6 in the brains of animals in all of the corn oil-diet groups suggested that young felines have a low biosynthetic capacity to produce this fatty acid or 22:6n-3. These findings suggest that in juvenile felines, maintenance of 22:6n-3 status in the nervous system is important for optimal retinal function.
在家猫身上进行了一项研究，以确定基于玉米油的母体饮食是否是必需脂肪酸的充足来源，以支持后代大脑和视网膜中长链多不饱和脂肪酸的正常积累，以及这些饮食是否对视觉功能有任何后续影响。雌性家猫在交配前1个月适应六种不同的特定饮食之一，并在整个怀孕和哺乳期维持这些饮食。四种饮食仅含有玉米和氢化椰子油作为脂肪来源，比例分别为1:9、3:7、6:4和9:1。两种参考饮食还含有长链多不饱和脂肪酸花生四烯酸（20:4n-6）和二十二碳六烯酸（22:6n-3）。当后代8周大时，获得视网膜电图并确定a波和b波的隐含时间。结果表明，与对照组相比，在母体饮食缺乏20:4n-6和22:6n-3的窝中饲养的动物，其a波和b波隐含时间增加。与对照动物相比，这些动物的视杆细胞外段和大脑中22:6n-3的含量较低，长链n-6多不饱和脂肪酸的含量较高。这些发现表明，尽管基于玉米油的饮食能够在发育中的大脑和视网膜中维持20:4n-6的浓度，但只有那些含有22:6n-3的饮食才能支持这些组织中二十二碳六烯酸的高积累。此外，所有玉米油饮食组动物大脑中22:5n-6的含量较低，这表明幼猫产生这种脂肪酸或22:6n-3的生物合成能力较低。这些发现表明，在幼年猫中，维持神经系统中22:6n-3的状态对于最佳视网膜功能很重要。
