Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids: The way forward in times of mixed evidence
Journal
BioMed Research International
Journal Volume
2015
Pages
143109
Date Issued
2015
Author(s)
Abstract
Almost forty years ago, it was first hypothesized that an increased dietary intake of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) from fish fat could exert protective effects against several pathologies. Decades of intense preclinical investigation have supported this hypothesis in a variety of model systems. Several clinical cardiovascular studies demonstrated the beneficial health effects of omega-3 PUFA, leading medical institutions worldwide to publish recommendations for their increased intake. However, particularly in recent years, contradictory results have been obtained in human studies focusing on cardiovascular disease and the clinical evidence in other diseases, particularly chronic inflammatory and neoplastic diseases, was never established to a degree that led to clear approval of treatment with omega-3 PUFA. Recent data not in line with the previous findings have sparked a debate on the health efficacy of omega-3 PUFA and the usefulness of increasing their intake for the prevention of a number of pathologies. In this review, we aim to examine the controversies on the possible use of these fatty acids as preventive/curative tools against the development of cardiovascular, metabolic, and inflammatory diseases, as well as several kinds of cancer. ? 2015 Karsten H. Weylandt et al.
SDGs
Other Subjects
caspase 4; caspase 7; cytosine; DNA; epidermal growth factor receptor; glucose regulated protein 78; histone; microRNA; mitogen activated protein kinase 1; omega 3 fatty acid; Ras protein; untranslated RNA; fish oil; omega 3 fatty acid; antiinflammatory activity; antineoplastic activity; apoptosis; cancer inhibition; cardiovascular disease; cardiovascular effect; cell membrane; clinical trial (topic); colon cancer; dimerization; DNA methylation; drug efficacy; drug mechanism; drug targeting; fat intake; gene expression; heart protection; histone modification; human; inflammatory disease; internalization; lipid raft; meta analysis (topic); metabolic disorder; multicenter study (topic); neoplasm; nonhuman; nutritional requirement; oxidative stress; phase 2 clinical trial (topic); prostate cancer; protein phosphorylation; randomized controlled trial (topic); Review; signal transduction; tumor microenvironment; animal; Cardiovascular Diseases; diet; diet therapy; metabolism; obesity; risk factor; Animals; Cardiovascular Diseases; Diet; Fatty Acids, Omega-3; Fish Oils; Humans; Obesity; Risk Factors
Publisher
Hindawi Publishing Corporation
Type
review