Dietary α-Linolenic Acid-Rich Flaxseed Oil Ameliorates High-Fat Diet-Induced Atherosclerosis via Gut Microbiota-Inflammation-Artery Axis in ApoE −/− Mice

Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine

article

Yiwei Li¹  Zhi Yu²  Yuanyuan Liu¹  Ting Wang¹  Yajuan Liu³  Zhixia Bai³  Yi Ren³  Huiyan Ma³  Ting Bao³  Haixia Lu²  Rui Wang³  Libo Yang⁴  Ning Yan⁴  Ru Yan⁴  Shaobin Jia⁴  Xiaoxia Zhang⁶  Hao Wang¹ 

[1] School of Basic Medical Sciences, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan;Department of Anesthesiology, People's Hospital of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Yinchuan;Clinical Medical College, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan;Department of Cardiovascular Diseases, Heart Centre, General Hospital of Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan;Ningxia Key Laboratory of Vascular Injury and Repair Research, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan;College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan

关键词: ALA-rich flaxseed oil;    atherosclerosis;    inflammation;    gut microbiota;    intestinal metabolites;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fcvm.2022.830781

学科分类：地球科学(综合)

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

Atherosclerosis (AS) is closely associated with abnormally chronic low-grade inflammation and gut dysbiosis. Flaxseed oil (FO) rich in omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), which are mainly composed of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA, 18:3 omega-3), has been demonstrated to exhibit pleiotropic benefits in chronic metabolic diseases. However, the impact of dietary ALA-rich FO on AS and its associated underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. Thus, the present study was designed as two phases to investigate the effects in atherosclerotic Apolipoprotein E ( ApoE ) −/− mice. In the initial portion, the ApoE −/− mice were randomly allocated to three groups: control group (CON), model group (MOD), and FO-fed model group (MOD/FO) and were treated for 12 weeks. The second phase used antibiotic (AB)-treated ApoE −/− mice were divided into two groups: AB-treated model group (AB/MOD) and FO-fed AB-treated model group (AB/FO). In the results, the dietary ALA-rich FO administration ameliorated atherosclerotic lesion, as well as the parameters of AS (body weights (BWs) and the total bile acids (TBA). Chronic systemic/vascular inflammatory cytokines and in situ macrophages (Mψs) were reduced with FO intervention. In addition, the FO improved the gut integrity and permeability by decreasing the plasma lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Moreover, gut dysbiosis and metabolites [short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and bile acids (BAs)] in AS were modulated after FO treatment. Intriguingly, during an AB-treated condition, a significantly weakened amelioration of FO-treated on AS proposed that the intestinal microbiota contributed to the FO effects. A correlation analysis showed close relationships among gut bacteria, metabolites, and inflammation. Collectively, these results suggested that the dietary ALA-rich FO ameliorated the AS in ApoE −/− mice via the gut microbiota-inflammation-artery axis.

【 授权许可】

CC BY