Medicinal Fatty Acids in Inflammation

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-x

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2. n-3 Polyunsaturated fatty acids and mononuclear phagocyte function

   • Philip C. Calder

   Pages 1-27

3. Gammalinolenic acid treatment of rheumatoid arthritis

   • Robert B. Zurier

   Pages 29-43

4. The role of n-3 fatty acids in psoriasis

   • Vincent A. Ziboh

   Pages 45-53

5. n-6 Fatty acids and atopic eczema

   • David F. Horrobin

   Pages 55-64

6. n-6 Fatty acids and nervous system disorders

   • David F. Horrobin

   Pages 65-71

7. n-3 Fatty acids on autoimmune disease and apoptosis

   • Gabriel Fernandes

   Pages 73-89

8. n-3 Fatty acids in the treatment of Crohn’s disease

   • Andrea Belluzzi, Federico Miglio

   Pages 91-101

9. n-3 Fatty acids in the treatment of ulcerative colitis

   • John B. Rodgers

   Pages 103-109

10. n-3 Fatty acids in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis

    • Piet P. Geusens

    Pages 111-123

11. n-3 Polyunsaturated fatty acids in the treatment of patients with IgA nephropathy

    • Joseph P. Grande, James V. Donadio

    Pages 125-140

12. Back Matter

    Pages 141-148

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This volume of Progress in Inflammation Research is a unique compilation of work performed by a wide spectrum of investigators from different medical disciplines. It is fascinating that dietary alterations of fatty acid intake can result in a range of salutory changes in a great variety of medical conditions. Most of the good scien­ tific work which has led to these observations has been performed over just the last two decades. This is of course not a very long time in the context of the history of the human species. Recently performed analysis of fat intake from paleolithic times has indicated that our hunter-gatherer ancestors consumed as much cholesterol as modern Western man, but strikingly less saturated fatty acid and more polyunsatu­ rates, including n-3 fatty acids. Wild game has the terrestrial source of n-3 incorpo­ rated in its fat since browsing animals derive 18:3n-3 (alpha-linolenic acid) natural­ ly from leafy plants. There is, however, little opportunity for modern Western man to get n-3 fatty acids from the diet if one does not consume fish. Modern agribusiness provides ani­ mal feeds high in n-6 fatty acids, mostly derived from linoleic acid (18:2n-6) in corn feed. Therefore, grazing animals have no access to alternative fatty acids in either feed or grasses, the latter containing little or none of these potentially beneficial highly polyunsaturated fatty acids.

• apoptosis
• autoimmune disease
• food
• food industry
• inflammation
• nervous system
• psoriasis
• rheumatism

• Division of Rheumatology, Albany Medical College, Albany, USA

  Joel M. Kremer

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