Dietary supplementation with omega-3 fatty acid attenuates 5-fluorouracil induced mucositis in mice

• Published in: Lipids in health and disease Vol. 14; no. 1; p. 54
• Main Authors: Generoso, Simone de Vasconcelos, Rodrigues, Núbia Morais, Trindade, Luísa Martins, Paiva, Nivea Carolina, Cardoso, Valbert Nascimento, Carneiro, Cláudia Martins, Ferreira, Adaliene Versiani de Matos, Faria, Ana Maria Caetano, Maioli, Tatiani Uceli
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BioMed Central Ltd 12.06.2015; BioMed Central
• Subjects: Animals; Apoptosis - drug effects; Dietary Supplements; Escherichia coli - metabolism; Fatty Acids, Omega-3 - pharmacology; Fatty Acids, Omega-3 - therapeutic use; Fluorouracil - adverse effects; Health aspects; Ileum - drug effects; Ileum - pathology; Injections; Intestinal Mucosa - drug effects; Intestinal Mucosa - pathology; Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Mucositis - chemically induced; Mucositis - drug therapy; Permeability - drug effects; Weight Loss - drug effects
• DOI: 10.1186/s12944-015-0052-z
• ISSN: 1476-511X

Studies showed the positive effects of omega-3 fatty acid (n-3 FA) for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease as it alleviated the symptoms and promoted better mucosal integrity. The objective of this study was to determine whether a diet with the addition of n-3 FA helps control the inflammation observed in 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) induced mucositis. BALB/c mice were randomly divided into four groups as follows: 1: control (CTL), fed a standard chow diet; 2: CTL + n-3 FA - n-3 FA, fed a diet with n-3; 3: mucositis (MUC), fed a standard chow diet and subjected to mucositis; and 4: MUC+ n-3 FA, fed a diet with n-3 FA and subjected to mucositis. On the 8th day, the animals of the MUC and MUC + n-3 FA groups received an intraperitoneal injection of 300 mg/kg 5-FU for mucositis induction. After 24 h or 72 h, all mice were euthanized and evaluated for intestinal permeability, bacterial translocation, intestinal histology and apoptosis. Mice that received the diet with n-3 FA and a 5-FU injection showed less weight loss compared to the animals of the MUC group (p < 0.005). Decreased intestinal permeability and bacterial translocation were also observed in animals fed n-3 FA, and these mice underwent mucositis compared to the MUC group (p < 0.005). These data were associated with mucosal integrity and a reduced number of apoptotic cells in the ileum mucosa compared to the mice that received the control diet and 5-FU injection. Together, these results show that omega-3 fatty acid decreases the mucosal damage caused by 5-FU-induced mucositis.