ArticleJournal of neurochemistry2016
Synthesis of docosahexaenoic acid from eicosapentaenoic acid in retina neurons protects photoreceptors from oxidative stress.
Article in Journal of neurochemistry, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 26 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
26 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 41 citations in OpenAlex.
- Dietary fatty acid intake, plasma fatty acid levels, and the risk of age-related macular degeneration (AMD): a dose-response meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies.European journal of nutrition · 2021Pooled it
- DHA deficiency drives neural oxidized-lipid stress and microglial activation.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Gut Microbiota and Metabolites: Biomarkers and Therapeutic Targets for Diabetes Mellitus and Its Complications.Nutrients · 2025Review
- [Advances in pharmacological research for retinopathy of prematurity].Zhejiang da xue xue bao. Yi xue ban = Journal of Zhejiang University. Medical sciences · 2025Review
- Eicosapentaenoic Acid (EPA) and Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA): A Targeted Antioxidant Strategy to Counter Oxidative Stress in Retinopathy.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
- (Photo)toxicity of Partially Oxidized Docosahexaenoate and Its Effect on the Formation of Lipofuscin in Cultured Human Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Personalizing Nutrition Strategies: Bridging Research and Public Health.Journal of personalized medicine · 2024Review
- Article
- DHA Shortage Causes the Early Degeneration of Photoreceptors and RPE in Mice With Peroxisomal β-Oxidation Deficiency.Investigative ophthalmology & visual science · 2023Article
- Endogenous and Exogenous Regulation of Redox Homeostasis in Retinal Pigment Epithelium Cells: An Updated Antioxidant Perspective.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Review
- Polyunsaturated Lipids in the Light-Exposed and Prooxidant Retinal Environment.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- The supplementation of a high dose of fish oil during pregnancy and lactation led to an elevation in Mfsd2a expression without any changes in docosahexaenoic acid levels in the retina of healthy 2-month-old mouse offspring.Frontiers in nutrition · 2023Article
- Dietary supplements in retinal diseases, glaucoma, and other ocular conditions.Journal of preventive medicine and hygiene · 2022Review
- Article
- Article
- Parenteral nutrition with fish oil-based lipid emulsion reduces the risk of cholestasis in preterm infants.The Journal of international medical research · 2021Article
- Peroxisomal Disorders and Their Mouse Models Point to Essential Roles of Peroxisomes for Retinal Integrity.International journal of molecular sciences · 2021Review
- Microalgae n-3 PUFAs Production and Use in Food and Feed Industries.Marine drugs · 2021Review
- Peroxisomal Multifunctional Protein 2 Deficiency Perturbs Lipid Homeostasis in the Retina and Causes Visual Dysfunction in Mice.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2021Article
- Quantitative Profiling of Oxylipin Reveals the Mechanism of Pien-Tze-Huang on Alcoholic Liver Disease.Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Oxidative stress is involved in activating photoreceptor death in several retinal degenerations. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), the major polyunsaturated fatty acid in the retina, protects cultured retina photoreceptors from apoptosis induced by oxidative stress and promotes photoreceptor differentiation. Here, we investigated whether eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), a metabolic precursor to DHA, had similar effects and whether retinal neurons could metabolize EPA to DHA. Adding EPA to rat retina neuronal cultures increased opsin expression and protected photoreceptors from apoptosis induced by the oxidants paraquat and hydrogen peroxide (H2 O2 ). Palmitic, oleic, and arachidonic acids had no protective effect, showing the specificity for DHA. We found that EPA supplementation significantly increased DHA percentage in retinal neurons, but not EPA percentage. Photoreceptors and glial cells expressed Δ6 desaturase (FADS2), which introduces the last double bond in DHA biosynthetic pathway. Pre-treatment of neuronal cultures with CP-24879 hydrochloride, a Δ5/Δ6 desaturase inhibitor, prevented EPA-induced increase in DHA percentage and completely blocked EPA protection and its effect on photoreceptor differentiation. These results suggest that EPA promoted photoreceptor differentiation and rescued photoreceptors from oxidative stress-induced apoptosis through its elongation and desaturation to DHA. Our data show, for the first time, that isolated retinal neurons can synthesize DHA in culture. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), the major polyunsaturated fatty acid in retina photoreceptors, and its precursor, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) have multiple beneficial effects. Here, we show that retina neurons in vitro express the desaturase FADS2 and can synthesize DHA from EPA. Moreover, addition of EPA to these cultures protects photoreceptors from oxidative stress and promotes their differentiation through its metabolization to DHA.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.