薬理と治療

Abstract

Background Accumulating evidence suggested that n︱3 polyunsaturated fatty acids（PUFAs） were associated with reduction of cardiovascular events. However, it remains unclear whether n-3 PUFAs have protective role in abdominal aortic aneurysm（AAA）formation. Methods 6-week-old apolipoprotein E-deficient mice were fed a high n-3 PUFA diet（EPA, EPA＋DHA, and DHA）or normal diet with high cholesterol. AngiotensinⅡ（n＝62）or normal saline（n＝6）were continuously infused from 12 weeks old by implanting osmotic mini-pumps and AAA formation was evaluated at 16 weeks. Results Seventy-five percent of angiotensinⅡ -infused mice with EPA treatment developed AAA formation, 100％ with EPA＋DHA treatment and 88.9％ with DHA treatment. The severity of AAA was slightly reduced in EPA treatment group. The mortality rates of each treatment group （EPA, EPA＋DHA, and DHA）were 12.5％, 25.0％ and 28.6％, respectively. Flow cytometric analyses revealed that EPA treatment increased Foxp3 positive regulatory T cells and effector T cells. The proportions of mature dendritic cells were not significantly different among those three treatment groups. Conclusion This study suggests that dietary supplementation with EPA might potentially have a protective role in AAA formation and reduce the mortality of AAA. More precise mechanisms are elucidated and promotion of n-3 PUFAs intake may represent a novel therapeutic approach to AAA.