Effects of n-3 very-long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids on bone mineralization

Abstract

The present study investigated whether dietary n-3 very-long-chain PUFAs (n-3 VLC-PUFAs) could increase skin and bone mineralization in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) in vivo and examined their potential effects on human osteoblast proliferation and differentiation in vitro. Atlantic salmon were fed different dietary levels of n-3 VLC-PUFA, and changes in tissue n-3 VLC-PUFA composition, skeletal morphology, skin and bone mineral content, bone mineral density (BMD), and gene expression patterns were examined. Additionally, in vitro experiments using human foetal osteoblast cells were conducted to investigate the potential influence of n-3 VLC-PUFA supplementation on cell proliferation, osteogenic differentiation, and cytokine expression. The results demonstrated that increasing the dietary levels of n-3 VLC-PUFAs increased the mineral content of vertebrae and BMD in salmon, with subtle yet significant impacts on the expression of genes involved in bone-related processes. Furthermore, in vitro experiments showed a potential contextual influence of n-3 VLC-PUFA supplementation on gene expression of osteogenic markers and cytokine expression. Our findings indicate for the first time that n-3 VLC-PUFAs may influence processes related to bone mineralization.