Brain docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) levels of young rats are related to alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) levels and fat matrix of the diet: impact of dairy fat

Dososahexaenoate (DHA) is highly concentrated in mammalian nervous and visual systems and its deficiency during gestation, lactation and early life, could have dramatic impacts on brain functions and mental health. Achieving an appropriate DHA status in the neonatal brain is an important goal of neonatal nutrition. We evaluated how a-linolenic acid (ALA) provided by different dietary fat matrices improved DHA content in the brains of both young male and female rats. Young rats born from dams fed during gestation and lactation with a low ALA diet (0.4% of fatty acids) were subjected for 6 weeks after weaning to an anhydrous dairy fat blend-based diet that provided 1.5% ALA or to a palm oil blend-based diet that provided the same ALA level: either 1.5% ALA or 1.5% ALA and 0.12% DHA with 0.4% arachidonic acid (ARA). With each diet the n-6/ n-3 ratio was similar (10) to follow the values generally recommended for infant formula. Fatty acids analysis in whole brain showed that 1.5% ALA dairy fat blend was superior to both 1.5% ALA palm-oil blends, supplemented or not with dietary DHA, for increasing brain DHA. Females compared to males had significantly higher brain DHA with the 1.5% ALA palm-blend diet, but the dietary supplementation with DHA smoothed the differences by a specific increase of males DHA brain. In conclusion, dairy fat blend enriched with ALA appear to be an interesting strategy for achieving optimal DHA levels in the brain of post-weaning rats. Inclusion of dairy fat in infant formulas should be reconsidered.