title: Influence of topical administration of n-3 and n-6 essential and n-9 nonessential fatty acids on the healing of cutaneous wounds.
abstract: Injury triggers a series of physiological events at the wound site. These include an inflammatory response that is established shortly after the injury, which is then followed by an intense formation of tissue over a period of days. Poly- and monounsaturated fatty acids exert major functions on the inflammatory responses, either in the form of phospholipids anchored in the cell membrane or as soluble lipoic mediators. We present evidence that linolenic (n-3), linoleic (n-6), and oleic (n-9) fatty acids can modulate the closure of surgically induced skin wounds. We found that n-9 fatty acids induced faster wound closure when compared to n-3, n-6, and control. In addition, n-9 fatty acids strongly inhibited the production of nitric oxide at the wound site. A mild improvement on wound closure was observed in the n-6 fatty acid-treated animals concurrent with a peak in nitric oxide production at 48 hours postsurgery. N-3 fatty acid treatment significantly delayed wound closure. Furthermore, we showed that n-3 fatty acid induced a peak in nitric oxide at 3 hours postsurgery and an intense deposition of extracellular matrix after 5 days of treatment. Thus, our results suggest a relevant role and potential therapeutic implication for fatty acids on skin wound healing.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Immunology, Universidade Federal de Uberlandia, Brazil.
authors.forename: Cristina Ribeiro Barros
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Cardoso
authors.forename: Maria Aparecida
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Souza
authors.forename: Eloísa Amália Vieira
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Ferro
authors.forename: Sílvio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Favoreto
authors.forename: Janethe Deolina Oliviera
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Pena
mesh_terms: D000287:Administration, Topical; D000818:Animals; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D019787:Linoleic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000096:biosynthesis; D019301:Oleic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D012867:Skin / Q000293:injuries* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D013997:Time Factors; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000187:drug effects*; D014950:Wounds, Penetrating / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D017962:alpha-Linolenic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage*
chemical_list: D017962:alpha-Linolenic Acid; D019301:Oleic Acid; D009569:Nitric Oxide; D019787:Linoleic Acid