Chapters authored
Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid Metabolism in the Brain and Brain Cells
Dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) have gained more importance these last decades since they regulate the level of long-chain PUFAs (LC-PUFAs) in all cells and especially in brain cells. Because LC-PUFAs, especially those of the n-3 family, display both anti-inflammatory and pro-resolution properties, they play an essential role in neuroinflammation. Neuroinflammation is a hallmark of neurological disorders and requires to be tightly controlled or at least limited otherwise it can have functional consequences and negatively impact the quality of life and well-being of patients. LC-PUFAs exert these beneficial properties in part through the synthesis of specialized pro-resolving mediators (SPMs) that are involved in the resolution of inflammation and to the return of homeostasis. SPMs are promising relevant candidates to resolve brain inflammation and to contribute to neuroprotective functions and lead to novel therapeutics for brain inflammatory diseases. Here we present an overview of the origin and accumulation of PUFAs in the brain and brain cells and their conversion into SPMs that are involved in neuroinflammation and how nutrition induces variations in LC-PUFA and SPM levels in the brain and in brain cells.
Part of the book: Feed Your Mind