Dietary Prenatal Lipids Affect Myelin Gene Expression in Postnatal Undernourished Rats

Abstract

The effects on myelin gene expression of prenatal diets with a different lipid content and fatty acid composition were investigated in undernourished pups. Three groups of rats were fed ad libitum during gestation diets containing either 10% of margarine or 10% of microbial lipids or a standard diet containing 3.5% of lipids. After birth, all groups were switched to a reduced intake (60%) of the standard diet. A control group received ad libitum, the standard diet during pregnancy and throughout lactation. At birth no difference in body and brain weight was observed among the groups and the only significant difference in the brain fatty acid composition was the presence of odd-chain fatty acids in the group fed microbial lipids. Milk was removed from the stomach of pups at 1, 5 and 9 days of lactation for fatty acid analysis. During undernourishment, the monoenoic fatty acid and polyenoic fatty acid percentage was always higher and lower, respectively, in the groups fed 10% than in the group fed 3.5% of lipids during pregnancy. The expression of myelin genes at 11 days of undernutrition was determined in different brain regions by Northern analysis. In the standard group, the proteolipid protein and myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein transcripts were well detected only in the medulla whereas in groups fed 10% of lipids the transcripts were also visible in the cerebellum. These data suggest that the high lipid content of the prenatal diet independently from its fatty acid composition affects the myelin gene expression decreasing myelin susceptibility to postnatal undernutrition.

Effect of chronic continuous or intermittent hypoxia and reoxygenation on cerebral capillary density and myelination

“…The importance of nutrition in myelin development during early life is well established (6,34,(52)(53)(54). It can be argued that, in this model, disruption in myelin formation could be attributed, in part, to poor nutrition.…”

Behavioral experiences as drivers of oligodendrocyte lineage dynamics and myelin plasticity

“…Diet in particular has been studied in the context of developmental myelination, where polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) have been linked to increased myelin gene expression and protection against white matter injury, with PUFA administration during maternal gestation leading to accelerated myelination and early development of behavioral reflexes (Confaloni et al, 1993;Gozzo et al, 1982;Salvati et al, 1996;Salvati et al, 2002;Tian et al, 2011;Tuzun et al, 2012). PUFAs are integral components of cell membranes including myelin membranes (Yurlova et al, 2011).…”

Dietary restriction supports peripheral nerve health by enhancing endogenous protein quality control mechanisms

“…In agreement, recent studies in liver cells have shown that aging or dietary fats cause malfunction in the UPS (Tomaru et al, 2012) or chaperone-mediated autophagy (Rodriguez-Navarro et al, 2012). How dietary fats affect protein degradative mechanisms in peripheral nerves is unknown, however exogenous lipids are critical for myelination (Salvati et al, 2002). For translational consideration, these studies also revealed that analyses of steady–state protein levels are not necessarily a good indication of pathway activity, certainly not in the case of the chaperone and the autophagy-lysosomal systems.…”