OMEGA-3

Oct 11, 2023

Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are fatty acids with multiple desaturations in the aliphatic tail. Short-chain PUFA (up to 16 carbons) are synthesized endogenously by fatty acid synthase. Long-chain PUFAs are fatty acids 18 carbons or more in length that contain two or more double bonds. Depending on the position of the first double bond near the methyl end, PUFA is classified as n-6 or n-3. Long-chain PUFAs are either absorbed directly from foods or synthesized from two essential fatty acids, linoleic acid and alpha-linolenic acid, through a series of desaturation and elongation processes (Tanaka, T. et al., 2008).

 

What is the FADS1 Gene?

δ-5 and δ-6 desaturases, encoded by the FADS1 and FADS2 genes, are rate-limiting enzymes (Lu, Y. et al., 2010).

OMEGA-3

Genes

rs

Minor Allele

Minor Allele Description

Reference

FADS1

rs174546

T

High relative risk for omega-3 (EPA/DHA) requirement.

(Lu, Y. et al., 2010)

The table above contains the genes and their polymorphisms involved in Omega 3 metabolism. The minor T allele of rs174546 has been associated with decreased LDL, HDL, and total cholesterol concentrations (Lu, Y. et al., 2010).

 

REFERENCES

 

Lu, Y., Feskens, E. J., Dollé, M. E., Imholz, S., Verschuren, W. M., Müller, M., & Boer, J. M. (2010). Dietary n−3 and n−6 polyunsaturated fatty acid intake interacts with FADS1 genetic variation to affect total and HDL-cholesterol concentrations in the Doetinchem Cohort Study. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 92(1), 258-265. https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.2009.29130

Tanaka, T., Shen, J., Abecasis, G. R., Kisialiou, A., Ordovas, J. M., Guralnik, J. M., Singleton, A., Bandinelli, S., Cherubini, A., Arnett, D., Tsai, M. Y., & Ferrucci, L. (2008). Genome-Wide Association Study of Plasma Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in the InCHIANTI Study. PLoS Genetics, 5(1). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1000338