title: Omega-3 fatty acids, lipid rafts, and T cell signaling.
abstract: n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) have been shown in many clinical studies to attenuate inflammatory responses. Although inflammatory responses are orchestrated by a wide spectrum of cells, CD4(+) T cells play an important role in the etiology of many chronic inflammatory diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease and obesity. In light of recent concerns over the safety profiles of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), alternatives such as bioactive nutraceuticals are becoming more attractive. In order for these agents to be accepted into mainstream medicine, however, the mechanisms by which nutraceuticals such as n-3 PUFA exert their anti-inflammatory effects must be fully elucidated. Lipid rafts are nanoscale, dynamic domains in the plasma membrane that are formed through favorable lipid-lipid (cholesterol, sphingolipids, and saturated fatty acids) and lipid-protein (membrane-actin cytoskeleton) interactions. These domains optimize the clustering of signaling proteins at the membrane to facilitate efficient cell signaling which is required for CD4(+) T cell activation and differentiation. This review summarizes novel emerging data documenting the ability of n-3 PUFA to perturb membrane-cytoskeletal structure and function in CD4(+) T cells. An understanding of these underlying mechanisms will provide a rationale for the use of n-3 PUFA in the treatment of chronic inflammation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA; Department of Nutrition and Food Science, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA; Program in Integrative Nutrition and Complex Diseases, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Tim Y
authors.initials: TY
authors.lastname: Hou
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition and Food Science, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA; Program in Integrative Nutrition and Complex Diseases, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA; Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA; Department of Microbial Pathogenesis and Immunology, Texas A&M University System Health Science Center, College Station, TX, USA.
authors.forename: David N
authors.initials: DN
authors.lastname: McMurray
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA; Department of Nutrition and Food Science, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA; Program in Integrative Nutrition and Complex Diseases, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA; Center for Translational Environmental Health Research, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA; Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA; Department of Microbial Pathogenesis and Immunology, Texas A&M University System Health Science Center, College Station, TX, USA. Electronic address: r-chapkin@tamu.edu.
authors.forename: Robert S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Chapkin
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000187:drug effects; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3 / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000187:drug effects; D021962:Membrane Microdomains / Q000187:drug effects*; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects*; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3
keywords: Lipid rafts; Omega-3 fatty acids; T cell activation; T cell differentiation