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Fish oil supplementation attenuates neuroinflammation and alleviates depressive-like behavior in rats submitted to repeated lipopolysaccharide

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Abstract

Purpose

Depression is frequently associated with inflammation, whereas omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) primarily found in fish oil possess anti-inflammatory properties. Although converging studies suggest an antidepressant effect of PUFAs, there is limited evidence directly linking the neuro-immune modulating features of PUFAs to the antidepressant actions.

Methods

Therefore, we assessed the effects of fish oil (FO) supplementation on behavioral changes, inflammatory cytokine expression and oxidative reactions in frontal cortex and hippocampus of rats following repeated peripheral immune challenge by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) for 2 weeks (500 μg/kg every other day).

Results

Repeated LPS administration induced the rats to a depressive-like state and increased mRNA expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines, including 1L-1β, 1L-6 and TNF-α, in frontal cortex and hippocampus. FO supplementation attenuated the LPS-induced abnormal behavior and brain inflammatory response. Concurrent with the antidepressant action, FO also reduced LPS-induced oxidative reactions and neural apoptosis in the rat brain, as evidenced by decreased malondialdehyde (MDA) production, increased catalase activities and inhibited pro-apoptotic protein Bax mRNA expression. In addition, FO inhibited activation of NF-κB and iNOS induced by LPS. Interestingly, we found FO suppressed the activation of the inflammasome NLRP3 and ionotropic purinergic receptor P2X7R evoked by LPS, suggesting a potential anti-inflammatory mechanism for PUFAs. Besides, FO also restored the LPS-induced neurochemical disturbance, especially the balance between serotonin and kynurenine branches of tryptophan metabolism, which is tightly associated with depression.

Conclusions

These findings provide novel insights into the antidepressant action of PUFAs and further strengthen the link between inflammation and depression.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by Tianjin Municipal Education Commission (No. 20130601) and National Natural Science Foundation of China (81602846).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Clinical Pharmacy and Pharmacology, Jining First People’s Hospital, Jining Medical University, Jining, 272000, China

    Ruili Dang, Pengfei Xu, Xiaoxue Gong & Pei Jiang

  2. Department of Cardiology, Jining First People’s Hospital, Jining Medical University, Jining, 272000, China

    Xueyuan Zhou

  3. Department of Pharmacy, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410008, China

    Mimi Tang

  4. Research Center of Basic Medical Sciences, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, 300070, China

    Yuanyuan Liu & Hongxiao Jiao

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  1. Ruili Dang
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Correspondence to Pei Jiang.

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Dang, R., Zhou, X., Tang, M. et al. Fish oil supplementation attenuates neuroinflammation and alleviates depressive-like behavior in rats submitted to repeated lipopolysaccharide. Eur J Nutr 57, 893–906 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-016-1373-z

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