title: Membrane effects of the n-3 fish oil fatty acids, which prevent fatal ventricular arrhythmias.
abstract: Fish oil fatty acids are known to exert beneficial effects on the heart and vascular systems. We have studied the membrane effects on ion channel conductance by the n-3 fish oil fatty acids that account for these beneficial effects. We have confirmed that these fatty acids prevent fatal cardiac arrhythmias in a reliable dog model of sudden cardiac death. This finding was followed by experiments indicating that the n-3 fatty acids electrically stabilize heart cells and do so largely through modulation of the fast voltage-dependent Na(+) currents and the L-type Ca(2+) channels in a manner, which makes the heart cells resistant to arrhythmias. Others and we have demonstrated that these membrane effects on the heart can prevent fatal cardiac arrhythmias in humans.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA. aleaf@partners.org
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Leaf
authors.forename: Y-F
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Xiao
authors.forename: J X
authors.initials: JX
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.forename: G E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Billman
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004285:Dogs; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3 / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D005395:Fish Oils / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D008564:Membrane Potentials / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D032383:Myocytes, Cardiac / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D017180:Tachycardia, Ventricular / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000517:prevention & control*
chemical_list: D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3; D005395:Fish Oils