title: Three-way assessment of long-chain n-3 PUFA nutrition: by questionnaire and matched blood and skin samples.
abstract: The long-chain n-3 PUFA, EPA, is believed to be important for skin health, including roles in the modulation of inflammation and protection from photodamage. FFQ and blood levels are used as non-invasive proxies for assessing skin PUFA levels, but studies examining how well these proxies reflect target organ content are lacking. In seventy-eight healthy women (mean age 42·8, range 21-60 years) residing in Greater Manchester, we performed a quantitative analysis of long-chain n-3 PUFA nutrition estimated from a self-reported FFQ (n 75) and correlated this with n-3 PUFA concentrations in erythrocytes (n 72) and dermis (n 39). Linear associations between the three n-3 PUFA measurements were assessed by Spearman correlation coefficients and agreement between these measurements was estimated. Average total dietary content of the principal long-chain n-3 PUFA EPA and DHA was 171 (SD 168) and 236 (SD 248) mg/d, respectively. EPA showed significant correlations between FFQ assessments and both erythrocyte (r 0·57, P< 0·0001) and dermal (r 0·33, P= 0·05) levels, as well as between erythrocytes and dermis (r 0·45, P= 0·008). FFQ intake of DHA and the sum of n-3 PUFA also correlated well with erythrocyte concentrations (r 0·50, P< 0·0001; r 0·27, P= 0·03). Agreement between ranked thirds of dietary intake, blood and dermis approached 50% for EPA and DHA, though gross misclassification was lower for EPA. Thus, FFQ estimates and circulating levels of the dietary long-chain n-3 PUFA, EPA, may be utilised as well-correlated measures of its dermal bioavailability.
authors.affiliation: Dermatological Sciences, Inflammation Sciences Research Group, Photobiology Unit, School of Translational Medicine, Manchester Academic Health Sciences Centre, Salford Royal Foundation Hospital, University of Manchester, Manchester M6 8HD, UK.
authors.forename: Sarah C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Wallingford
authors.affiliation: Dermatological Sciences, Inflammation Sciences Research Group, Photobiology Unit, School of Translational Medicine, Manchester Academic Health Sciences Centre, Salford Royal Foundation Hospital, University of Manchester, Manchester M6 8HD, UK.
authors.forename: Suzanne M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Pilkington
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmacy and Centre for Skin Sciences, School of Life Sciences, University of Bradford, Bradford, UK.
authors.forename: Karen A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Massey
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmacy and Centre for Skin Sciences, School of Life Sciences, University of Bradford, Bradford, UK.
authors.forename: Naser M I
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Al-Aasswad
authors.affiliation: Cancer and Population Studies Group, Queensland Institute of Medical Research, Brisbane, Australia.
authors.forename: Torukiri I
authors.initials: TI
authors.lastname: Ibiebele
authors.affiliation: Cancer and Population Studies Group, Queensland Institute of Medical Research, Brisbane, Australia.
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Celia Hughes
authors.affiliation: Dermatological Sciences, Inflammation Sciences Research Group, Photobiology Unit, School of Translational Medicine, Manchester Academic Health Sciences Centre, Salford Royal Foundation Hospital, University of Manchester, Manchester M6 8HD, UK.
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bennett
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmacy and Centre for Skin Sciences, School of Life Sciences, University of Bradford, Bradford, UK.
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nicolaou
authors.affiliation: Dermatological Sciences, Inflammation Sciences Research Group, Photobiology Unit, School of Translational Medicine, Manchester Academic Health Sciences Centre, Salford Royal Foundation Hospital, University of Manchester, Manchester M6 8HD, UK.
authors.forename: Lesley E
authors.initials: LE
authors.lastname: Rhodes
authors.affiliation: Dermatological Sciences, Inflammation Sciences Research Group, Photobiology Unit, School of Translational Medicine, Manchester Academic Health Sciences Centre, Salford Royal Foundation Hospital, University of Manchester, Manchester M6 8HD, UK.
authors.forename: Adèle C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Green
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001682:Biological Availability; D001706:Biopsy; D003627:Data Interpretation, Statistical; D004032:Diet; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000378:metabolism; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3 / Q000097:blood* / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation; D008875:Middle Aged; D015596:Nutrition Assessment; D012867:Skin / Q000378:metabolism*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D006113:United Kingdom; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3