Abstract
Purpose:
Retinal detachment (RD) is a sight threatening disorder characterized by the physical separation of the photoreceptors from the retinal pigment epithelium. As a result, the detached photoreceptors undergo apoptosis and programmed cell death. It has been suggested that omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid (LCPUFA) and its derivatives have the neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory properties. On the other hand, omega-6 LCPUFA has been suggested as pro-inflammatory. In this study, we examined the effect of dietary supplementation, with omega-3 and omega-6 LCPUFAs, on photoreceptor cell death after RD.
Methods:
C57BL/6J mice were fed a diet enriched with either omega-3 or omega-6 LCPUFAs for 2 weeks. Then RD was induced by subretinal injection of 4 ul of sodium hyaluronate into C57BL/6J mice. RD-induced photoreceptor cell death was assessed by TUNEL staining at 24, 48, 72hrs, and 7 days after the surgery. Additionally, outer nuclear layer thickness was evaluated 7days after the surgery.
Results:
The number of TUNEL positive cells in the outer nuclear layer was not significant in mice fed either omega-3 or omega-6 LCPUFAs 24hrs post retinal detachment (p=0.1). However at 48hrs post detachment omega-3 fed mice had a significant, albeit small, decrease in the number of TUNEL positive cells (p=0.04) compared to their omega-6 fed counterparts. There was no difference in the number of TUNEL positive cells at 72hrs and 7days after RD. Outer nuclear layer thickness at 7 days after RD was not different between omega-3 and omega-6 LCPUFAs fed mice.
Conclusions:
We demonstrated that dietary supplementation with omega-3 and omega-6 LCPUFAs does not likely play a significant effect on photoreceptor cell death after RD. This suggests that omega-3 LCPUFA lack a neuroprotective effect on photoreceptor cell death after RD.