Anti-inflammatory effect of Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in children with bronchial asthma; relation to nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) and inflammatory cytokines il-12 and il-13

Abstract

Asthma is one of the most common chronic inflammatory diseases of the airways .We aimed to investigate the potential antiinflammatory role of omega -3 Polyunsaturated fatty acids (Ω-3 PUFA) supplementation in children with bronchial asthma in relation to the pulmonary functions, NF-κB and cytokines (IL -12 and IL-13). Asthmatic children (110 subjects) were divided into two groups: group A (60) supplemented with fish oil capsules containing 300 mg docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and 700 mg eicosapentaenoic (EPA) in a dose of one capsule per day for one month, and group B (50 subjects) received placebo capsules for one month. Plasma level of DHA, NF-κB, IL-12, IL-13 and pulmonary functions were compared between both groups before and after supplementation. The results showed that plasma DHA was increased with decrease of NF-κB, IL-
12, IL-13, and improvement of forced vital capacity of the lungs in the supplemented group. There was a significant difference between supplemented and placebo group. Plasma DHA level was positively

correlated to pulmonary function tests and negatively correlated to NF-κB, IL-12 and IL-13. These results suggest that Ω-3 PUFA supplementation is useful for treatment of asthma due to suppression of NF-κB with subsequent decreasing production of inflammatory cytokines and improvement of pulmonary functions.

Keywords: Bronchial asthma, Ω-3 PUFA, DHA, EPA, NF-κB , cytokines.