Combining nutrition, food science and engineering in developing solutions to Inflammatory bowel diseases – omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids as an example

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) are chronic, inflammatory processes that affect the gastrointestinal tract and are mainly represented by ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s disease (CD). Omega 3 (ω3) fatty acids (eicosapentanoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid) show an indispensable role in the inflammatory processes and, for these reasons, we aimed to review the effects of these acids on UC and CD. Databases such as PUMED and EMBASE were searched, and the final selection included fifteen studies that fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The results showed that ω3 fatty acids reduce intestinal inflammation, induce and maintain clinical remission in UC patients, and are related with the reduction of proinflammatory cytokines, decrease disease activity and increase the quality of life of CD patients. Furthermore, the consumption of these fatty acids may be related to a reduced risk of developing IBD. Many studies have shown the beneficial effects of ω3 as adjunctive in the treatment or prevention of UC or CD. Nevertheless, most were performed with a small number of patients and there are many variations in the mode of consumption, the type of food or the type of formulation used. All these factors substantially interfere with the results and do not allow reliable comparisons.

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Identifying environmental risk factors for inflammatory bowel diseases: a Mendelian randomization study

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-020-76361-2 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Robert Carreras-Torres ◽

Gemma Ibáñez-Sanz ◽

Mireia Obón-Santacana ◽

Eric J. Duell ◽

Victor Moreno

Keyword(s):

Fatty Acids ◽

Body Fat ◽

Inflammatory Bowel Diseases ◽

Mendelian Randomization ◽

Body Fat Percentage ◽

Omega 3 Fatty Acids ◽

Omega 3 ◽

Fat Percentage ◽

Bowel Diseases ◽

Inflammatory Bowel

Abstract Several studies have examined environmental factors and inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) using traditional approaches; however, provided results are still conflicting. Our aim was to determine whether lifestyle and nutrient exposures, related to IBD in observational meta-analyses, influence IBD risk using a Mendelian randomization (MR) approach. A two-sample MR approach was applied on summary-level genome-wide association results. Genetic variants strongly associated with measures of tobacco smoking, obesity and fat distribution, physical activity, and blood levels of vitamins and fatty acids were evaluated on genetic data from international IBD consortia including a total of 25,042 IBD cases (12,194 cases of Crohn’s disease (CD) and 12,366 cases of ulcerative colitis (UC)) and 34,915 controls. Our results indicated that, among lifestyle exposures, being a smoker was positively associated with CD (OR 1.13, P = 0.02), but it was not associated with UC risk (OR 0.99, P = 0.88). Body-mass index (BMI) and body fat percentage were positively associated with CD (OR 1.11, P = 0.02, per standard deviation (SD) of 4.6 kg/m2; and OR 1.50, P = 3 × 10–10, per SD of 6.6%; respectively); while for UC, BMI was inversely associated (OR 0.85, P = 5 × 10–5; per SD) and body fat percentage showed a OR of 1.11 (P = 0.11; per SD). Additionally, among nutrient exposures, omega-3 fatty acids levels were inversely associated with CD (OR 0.67, P = 2 × 10–6). Our MR results did not support a protective effect for being a smoker on UC risk; however, they are compatible with a risk effect for higher body fat proportion and a protective role for higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids on CD etiology.

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Polyunsaturated fatty acids, inflammatory processes and inflammatory bowel diseases

Molecular Nutrition & Food Research ◽

10.1002/mnfr.200700289 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 52 (8) ◽

pp. 885-897 ◽

Cited By ~ 280

Author(s):

Philip C. Calder

Keyword(s):

Fatty Acids ◽

Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids ◽

Inflammatory Bowel Diseases ◽

Bowel Diseases ◽

Inflammatory Processes ◽

Inflammatory Bowel

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The Influence of Nutrients on Inflammatory Bowel Diseases

Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism ◽

10.1155/2020/2894169 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 2020 ◽

pp. 1-14 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Sara Jarmakiewicz-Czaja ◽

Dominika Piątek ◽

Rafał Filip

Keyword(s):

Ulcerative Colitis ◽

Fatty Acids ◽

Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids ◽

Beneficial Effect ◽

Inflammatory Bowel Diseases ◽

Dietary Fibre ◽

Inflammatory Diseases ◽

Remission Period ◽

Bowel Diseases ◽

Inflammatory Bowel

Inflammatory bowel diseases is a group of inflammatory diseases. The pathogenesis of diseases is multifactorial, which may include a Western-type diet. Diseases occur with periods of recurrence and remission. Many factors can have a beneficial effect on reducing the frequency of recurrence and prolonging the remission period. Such ingredients include dietary fibre, mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids, certain vitamins (D, C, and E), flavonoids, and minerals such as zinc and selenium. Properly selected nutrition might be an integral part of the treatment of patients with Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis.

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Health Implications of High Dietary Omega-6 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids

Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism ◽

10.1155/2012/539426 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 2012 ◽

pp. 1-16 ◽

Cited By ~ 340

Author(s):

E. Patterson ◽

R. Wall ◽

G. F. Fitzgerald ◽

R. P. Ross ◽

C. Stanton

Keyword(s):

Fatty Acids ◽

Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids ◽

Inflammatory Diseases ◽

Lipid Mediator ◽

Omega 3 ◽

Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver ◽

Chronic Inflammatory Diseases ◽

Signalling Molecules ◽

Omega 6 ◽

Inflammatory Bowel

Omega-6 (n-6) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) (e.g., arachidonic acid (AA)) and omega-3 (n-3) PUFA (e.g., eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA)) are precursors to potent lipid mediator signalling molecules, termed “eicosanoids,” which have important roles in the regulation of inflammation. In general, eicosanoids derived from n-6 PUFA are proinflammatory while eicosanoids derived from n-3 PUFA are anti-inflammatory. Dietary changes over the past few decades in the intake of n-6 and n-3 PUFA show striking increases in the (n-6) to (n-3) ratio (~15 : 1), which are associated with greater metabolism of the n-6 PUFA compared with n-3 PUFA. Coinciding with this increase in the ratio of (n-6) : (n-3) PUFA are increases in chronic inflammatory diseases such as nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), cardiovascular disease, obesity, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), rheumatoid arthritis, and Alzheimer's disease (AD). By increasing the ratio of (n-3) : (n-6) PUFA in the Western diet, reductions may be achieved in the incidence of these chronic inflammatory diseases.

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Evaluation of metabolites levels in feces of patients with inflammatory bowel diseases

Biomeditsinskaya Khimiya ◽

10.18097/pbmc20206603233 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 66 (3) ◽

pp. 233-240

Author(s):

E.S. Zhgun ◽

Y.V. Kislun ◽

T.N. Kalachniuk ◽

V.A. Veselovsky ◽

A.S. Urban ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fatty Acids ◽

Inflammatory Bowel Diseases ◽

Intestinal Microflora ◽

Fecal Microbiota ◽

Unknown Etiology ◽

Published Data ◽

Resonance Spectroscopy ◽

Healthy Donors ◽

Bowel Diseases ◽

Inflammatory Bowel

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), which include ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD), are chronic intestinal inflammatory disorders with an unknown etiology. They are characterized by chronic recurrent inflammation of the intestinal mucosa and lead to a significant decrease in the quality of life and death of patients. IBD are associated with suppression of normal intestinal microflora, including a decrease in bacteria, producers of short chain fatty acids (SCFAs), exhibiting anti-inflammatory and protective properties. Among the various methods of intestinal microflora correction, fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT), which engrafts the fecal microbiota from a healthy donor into a patient recipient, is of a particular interest. As a result, a positive therapeutic effect is observed, accompanied by the restoration of the normal intestinal microflora of the patient. A significant drawback of the method is the lack of standardization. Metabolites produced by intestinal microflora, namely SCFAs, allow objective assessment of the functional state of the intestinal microbiota and, consequently, the success of the FMT procedure. Using gas chromatography and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy techniques, we have analyzed concentrations and molar ratios of SCFAs in fecal samples of 60 healthy donors. Results were in good accord when comparing two methods as well as with published data. Analysis of SCFAs in feces of patients with UC (19 patients) and CD (17 patients) revealed a general decrease in the concentration of fatty acids in the experimental groups with significant fluctuations in the values in experimental groups compared to control group of healthy donors. On the limited group of IBD patients (6 patients with UC and 5 patients with CD) concentration of SCFAs before and within 30 days of observation after FMT was determined. It was shown that FMT had a significant impact on the SCFAs levels within 1 month term; tendency to reach characteristics of healthy donors is unambiguously traced for both diseases.

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Corrigendum: Short Chain Fatty Acids (SCFAs)-Mediated Gut Epithelial and Immune Regulation and Its Relevance for Inflammatory Bowel Diseases

Frontiers in Immunology ◽

10.3389/fimmu.2019.01486 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 10 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Daniela Parada Venegas ◽

Marjorie K. De la Fuente ◽

Glauben Landskron ◽

María Julieta González ◽

Rodrigo Quera ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fatty Acids ◽

Immune Regulation ◽

Inflammatory Bowel Diseases ◽

Short Chain Fatty Acids ◽

Short Chain ◽

Bowel Diseases ◽

Inflammatory Bowel ◽

Chain Fatty Acids

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Inflammatory Bowel Diseases and diet: an integrative review

Revista da Associação Médica Brasileira ◽

10.1590/1806-9282.66.10.1449 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 66 (10) ◽

pp. 1449-1454

Author(s):

Regina Márcia Soares Cavalcante ◽

Murilo Moura Lima ◽

José Miguel Luz Parente ◽

Mayara Storel Beserra de Moura ◽

Nadir do Nascimento Nogueira

Keyword(s):

Inflammatory Bowel Diseases ◽

Fruits And Vegetables ◽

Scientific Evidence ◽

Integrative Review ◽

Animal Origin ◽

Human Beings ◽

Omega 3 ◽

Bowel Diseases ◽

Inflammatory Bowel ◽

Fermentable Carbohydrates

SUMMARY OBJECTIVE: To gather scientific evidence on the role of diet in inflammatory bowel diseases. METHODS: Integrative review with studies published in the last 10 years in national and international journals. Original studies developed with adult human beings aged ≥18 years were included and articles published before 2010, literature reviews, and those that did not focus on elements that answered the guiding question were excluded. RESULTS: 14 articles were selected that addressed important dietary elements in inflammatory bowel disease such as fermentable carbohydrates and polyols, foods of animal origin, foods rich in omega 3, consumption of fruits and vegetables, use of probiotic supplements, whey proteins and soy. CONCLUSION: The diet, as a potentially modifiable environmental factor, plays an important role in the prevention and treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases. The reduction in the consumption of fermentable carbohydrates and polyols combined with the increase in the consumption of fruits and vegetables as well as the exclusion of products of animal origin such as beef, pork, milk and eggs can help control inflammation and improve the quality of life of patients with inflammatory bowel diseases. The use of probiotics increases food tolerance and, whey and soy proteins, can alter body composition and reduce inflammation.

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