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Title: Omega-3 Fatty Acid Reduces Pro-Inflammatory Cytokines In Heart Transplant Patients: Presented at ACP-ASIM

"Omega-3 Fatty Acid Reduces Pro-Inflammatory Cytokines In Heart Transplant Patients: Presented at ACP-ASIM"

By Peggy Peck Special to DG News PHILADELPHIA, PA -- April 11, 2002 -- Omega-3 fatty acids appear to be as beneficial for patients with newly transplanted hearts as they are for those with ailing and healthy native hearts. The findings were presented here today at the 2002 Annual Session of the American College of Physicians-American Society of Internal Medicine. William Harris, PhD, and colleagues from the University of Missouri Kansas City School of Medicine gave 25 stable heart transplant patients two capsules of omega-3 fatty acid daily - each capsule contained 500 mg of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA). Standard drug therapy was unaltered. Blood samples were collected at baseline and at six months. Serum cytokine levels were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The researchers were able to analyse baseline and post-treatment cytokine levels in 17 patients. Five patients discontinued the study for reasons not related to the protocol, and baseline blood samples for three patients were lost in processing. A paired t test (two-tailed) was used to determine treatment effect. The results suggest that omega-3 fatty acid supplementation increased concentrations of the anti-inflammatory interleukin (IL)-10, from 119 to 268 pg/mL (p=0.00008). There were reductions in systemic levels of pro-inflammatory IL-12, from 473 to 376 pg/mL (p=0.001), and IL-6, from 695 to 569 pg/mL (p<0.0001). However, the researchers also observed a paradoxical decrease in the anti-inflammatory IL-4, 957 to 710 pg/mL (p=0.00001). The findings support the hypothesis that moderate omega-3 fatty acid supplementation might have a beneficial effect on immunological balance in heart transplant patients, Dr. Harris concluded. They also provide potentially important insights into the molecular mechanisms by which omega-3 fatty acids benefit patients with atherosclerosis in native vessels, he said.

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