Retinopathy: mechanism behind Omega-3 benefits discovered
Omega 3 benefits: here's how fish oil acts on retinopathy
Omega-3 fatty acids are effective in treating retinopathy, a disease that affects babies born prematurely and those with diabetes. And researchers at Harvard Medical School in Boston, USA, have demonstrated the molecular mechanisms behind this effect.
The news, which appeared in the pages of Science Translational Medicine, sheds light on theaction carried out by omega-3 fatty acids on the blood microcirculation of the eye. And it is precisely on this action that the beneficial effects of these active ingredients are based against a disease that would otherwise lead sufferers to blindness.
A question of blood vessels
In premature infants, retinopathy is caused by the formation of new blood vessels in the eye, at the level of the retina. On the other hand, the altered metabolism typical of the diabetic patient can also lead to this neoformation of vessels. The most serious consequence of this is retinal detachment, which causes loss of vision. Harvard researchers have shown that Omega-3s inhibit precisely angiogenesis, that is, the formation of new blood vessels. According to their studies, oncedocosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is absorbed by the body, it is converted by the enzyme 5-lipoxygenase (5-LOX) into 4-hydroxy-docosahexaenoic acid (4-HDHA), which is the molecule that inhibits the spread and irregular growth of blood vessels.
Valuable data from mice
Scientists discovered the mechanism of action of Omega-3s by working on laboratory mice, in which they were able, throughgenetic engineering techniques, to eliminate one at a time the four main enzymes involved in the conversion of Omega-3s into the molecules that are actually used by cells. In this way they observed that the step responsible for theprotective effect of fatty acids is the one controlled by 5-LOX, and that the 4-HDHA produced through the action of this enzyme directly inhibits the growth and spread of blood vessels. Not only that, elevated production of 4-HDHA was also observed in the course of the research under stress conditions such as those that cause retinopathy in premature infants and diabetic subjects.
Road paved toward new treatments
As has been pointed out by the authors themselves, the results available today pave the way toward the development of new targeted treatments, which could also be used in combination with currently used retinopathy therapies. And the benefit would also be economic, bearing in mind that the cost of Omega-3 supplements is far less than that of classical retinopathy therapies.
