OMEGA-3S AND NLRP3 INFLAMMASOME SIGNALING IN HUMAN OBESITY
posted: Mar. 05, 2019.
In a recent study in the Journal of Endocrinology, the relationship between fish oil-derived long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFA) and the suppression of NLRP3 inflammasomes in human obesity through downregulation of inflammasome gene expression in adipocytes and macrophages was investigated. The NRLP3 inflammasome serves as a critical link between adipose inflammation and insulin resistance. This placebo-controlled clinical trial lasted 8 weeks, using 4 grams of EPA/DHA or placebo.
Results showed that “treatment of obese human subjects with fish oil supplements reduced expression of adipose inflammatory genes including inflammasome-associated IL-18 and IL-1β and circulating IL-18 levels. Both EPA and DHA reduced inflammasome gene expression in obese human adipose and human adipocyte and macrophages.”
This study highlights the importance of N-3 PUFAs in reducing NLRP3 inflammasone in human adipose tissue, and its relevance in helping support healthy inflammatory pathways as they related to obesity.
