Spatial changes of fatty acids in the retina in response to different dietary n-3 formulations have never been explored, although a diet rich in EPA and DHA is recommended to protect the retina against the effects of aging. In this study, Wistar rats were fed for 8 weeks with balanced diet including either EPA-containing phospholipids, EPA-containing triglycerides, DHA-containing phospholipids, or DHA-containing triglycerides. Qualitative changes in fatty acid composition of plasma, erythrocytes and retina were evaluated by gas chromatography-flame ionization detector. Following the different dietary intakes, changes to the quantity and spatial organization of phosphatidylcholine (PC) and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) species in retina were determined by liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry and MALDI (Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization) coupled to mass spectrometry imaging. The omega-3 content in the lipids of plasma and erythrocytes suggests that phospholipids as well as triglycerides are good omega-3 carriers for retina. However, a significant increase in DHA content in retina was observed, especially molecular species as di-DHA-containing PC and PE, as well as an increase in very long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (VLC-PUFAs, more than 28 carbons) following phospholipid-EPA and triglyceride-DHA diets only. All supplemented diets triggered spatial organization changes of DHA in the photoreceptor layer around the optic nerve. Taken together, these findings suggest that dietary omega-3 supplementation can modify the content of fatty acids in the rat retina.

中文翻译：

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膳食 omega-3 补充后大鼠视网膜中脂肪酸的生物利用度和空间分布。


尽管建议使用富含 EPA 和 DHA 的饮食来保护视网膜免受衰老的影响，但从未探索过视网膜中脂肪酸对不同饮食 n-3 配方的空间变化。在这项研究中，Wistar 大鼠被喂食 8 周的均衡饮食，其中包括含 EPA 的磷脂、含 EPA 的甘油三酯、含 DHA 的磷脂或含 DHA 的甘油三酯。通过气相色谱-火焰离子化检测器评估血浆、红细胞和视网膜的脂肪酸组成的定性变化。根据不同的饮食摄入量，通过液相色谱串联质谱联用和 MALDI（基质辅助激光解吸电离）联用质谱成像测定视网膜中磷脂酰胆碱 (PC) 和磷脂酰乙醇胺 (PE) 的数量和空间组织的变化。血浆和红细胞脂质中的 omega-3 含量表明，磷脂和甘油三酯是视网膜良好的 omega-3 载体。然而，观察到视网膜中的 DHA 含量显着增加，特别是含有二 DHA 的 PC 和 PE 等分子种类，以及磷脂后极长链多不饱和脂肪酸（VLC-PUFA，超过 28 个碳）的增加-仅限 EPA 和甘油三酯-DHA 饮食。所有补充饮食都会引发视神经周围感光层中 DHA 的空间组织变化。总而言之，这些发现表明膳食中补充 omega-3 可以改变大鼠视网膜中的脂肪酸含量。