n-3 Fatty acids and the endocannabinoid system

Dietary conjugated linoleic acid supplementation alters the expression of genes involved in the endocannabinoid system in the bovine endometrium and increases plasma progesterone concentrations

Endocannabinoids are derived from phospholipids and reduce fertility by interfering with implantation. Identification of changes in the expression of genes of the endocannabinoid system as a result of dietary inclusion of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is critical to the advancement of our understanding of the nutritional regulation of uterine function. An experiment was conducted on transition cows to evaluate the expression of key endocannabinoid genes in bovine endometrium in response to dietary supplementation with CLA. A total of 16 cows were randomly assigned to two treatments: (1) control (75 g/day palm oil) and (2) CLA (75 g/day CLA) from 21 days prepartum to Day 42 postpartum. Cows underwent uterine biopsy on days 21 and 42 postpartum. The abundance of mRNA encoding endocannabinoid receptor (CNR2), N-acyl phosphatidylethanolamine phospholipase D (NAPEPLD), fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH), N-acylethanolamine acid amidase (NAAA), and monoglyceride lipase (MGLL) was measured by real-time PCR. Results reported that relative levels of mRNA encoding CNR2 and NAPEPLD were decreased (P < 0.05) compared with control cows between Days 21 and 42 postpartum. Relative levels of mRNA coding for NAAA and MGLL were not different (P > 0.05) in the same situation. Mean plasma progesterone concentrations were higher in CLA-fed cows compared with control cows at Day 42 postpartum (3.51 and 1.42 ng/mL, respectively, P < 0.05). In conclusion, we suggest that the beneficial effects of a diet enriched with CLA are the result of a decrease in relative gene expression of the endocannabinoid receptor (CNR2) and enzymes that synthesize fatty acid amides (NAPEPLD) and of an increase in the expression of PTGS2 that in turn can oxidate endocannabinoids and consequently resulted in increased plasma progesterone concentrations during early lactation.

Considerable disagreement among definitions of metabolic syndrome for Japanese

BACKGROUND

The purpose of the present study is to examine the agreement of various existing definitions of metabolic syndrome for Japanese.

METHODS AND RESULTS

One hundred thirty-two apparently healthy men and 147 apparently healthy women underwent testing and diagnosis for metabolic syndrome using 5 different definitions of metabolic syndrome for Japanese, including a newly proposed definition: a modified National Cholesterol Education Program definition replacing abdominal obesity with C-reactive protein. The agreement of these various definitions of metabolic syndrome was studied using an agreement index defined as the number of subjects who met both definitions divided by the number of subjects who met either of the 2 definitions. Agreement indices among these various definitions of metabolic syndrome for Japanese were between 0.19 and 0.6 in men and between 0.31 and 0.89 in women. The average agreement index was 0.41 in men and 0.51 in women, and the overall agreement index was 0.15 in men and 0.21 in women.

CONCLUSIONS

There was considerable disagreement among various definitions of metabolic syndrome for Japanese. Therefore, diagnosis with this syndrome should not be made until a truly consensual definition of metabolic syndrome can be established.