Go to the home page

MAJORITY OF THE HUMAN BRAIN CONSISTS OF FAT

The cell membrane is a thin, layered sheet that separates the cell from the world outside. Cell membranes are a two-molecule layer (bilayer) of phospholipid.

Almost 60% of the brain’s solid mass is constituted of phospholipids, which contain fatty acids and have an important role in cellular signaling. The other part of the brains consists of 30% protein. In conclusion, the majority of the human brain consists of fat.

BrainFat1

The problem that arises is about a fifth of that fat cannot be established by the body. Therefore, people have to acquire it from their diet.

Fat from Meat

Can J Psychiatry. 2003 Apr;48(3):195-203.

Essential fatty acids and the brain.

Haag M.

Department of Physiology, University of Pretoria, PO Box 2034, Pretoria 0001, South Africa. mhaag@medic.up.ac.za

OBJECTIVE: To review the role of essential fatty acids in brain membrane function and in the genesis of psychiatric disease. METHOD: Medline databases were searched for published articles with links among the following key words: essential fatty acids, omega-3 fatty acids, docosahexanoic acid, eicosapentanoic acid, arachidonic acid, neurotransmission, phospholipase A2, depression, schizophrenia, mental performance, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, and Alzheimer's disease. Biochemistry textbooks were consulted on the role of fatty acids in membrane function, neurotransmission, and eicosanoid formation. The 3-dimensional structures of fatty acids were obtained from the Web site of the Biochemistry Department, University of Arizona (2001). RESULTS: The fatty acid composition of neuronal cell membrane phospholipids reflects their intake in the diet. The degree of a fatty acid's desaturation determines its 3-dimensional structure and, thus, membrane fluidity and function. The ratio between omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), in particular, influences various aspects of serotoninergic and catecholaminergic neurotransmission, as shown by studies in animal models. Phospholipase A2 (PLA2) hydrolyzes fatty acids from membrane phospholipids: liberated omega-6 PUFAs are metabolized to prostaglandins with a higher inflammatory potential, compared with those generated from the omega-3 family. Thus the activity of PLA2 coupled with membrane fatty acid composition may play a central role in the development of neuronal dysfunction. Intervention trials in human subjects show that omega-3 fatty acids have possible positive effects in the treatment of various psychiatric disorders, but more data are needed to make conclusive directives in this regard. CONCLUSION: The ratio of membrane omega-3 to omega-6 PUFAs can be modulated by dietary intake. This ratio influences neurotransmission and prostaglandin formation, processes that are vital in the maintenance of normal brain function.

PMID: 12728744 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

FASEB J. 1992 May;6(8):2530-6. 

Biochemistry and physiology of n-3 fatty acids.

Lands WE.

Department of Biochemistry, University of Illinois, Chicago 60612.

Considering the n-3 fatty acids to be partial agonists relative to n-6 fatty acids helps consolidate into a unified interpretation the many diverse reports and controversies on the actions of these two types of essential fatty acids. Some research reports illustrate the similarities between these two types and some emphasize the differences, leaving readers to evaluate the status of n-3 fatty acids from a viewpoint that is conceptually similar to regarding a glass of water as half empty or half full. Both n-3 and n-6 types of fatty acids must be obtained through the diet because they are not synthesized de novo by vertebrates. Both types can support important physiological and developmental processes, can form eicosanoids (prostaglandins, leukotrienes, lipoxins, etc.), can be esterified to and hydrolyzed from tissue glycerolipids, and can be metabolically elongated and desaturated to a variety of highly unsaturated fatty acids. However, some nonesterified n-6 acids are vigorously converted to potent n-6 eicosanoids that exert intense agonist actions at eicosanoid receptors, whereas the n-3 acids less vigorously form n-3 eicosanoids that often produce less intense (partial) actions. Because both types owe their presence in vertebrate tissues to dietary intake, important physiological consequences follow the inadvertent selection of different average daily dietary supplies of these two types of polyunsaturated fatty acids.

PMID: 1592205 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

 

* These statements on newlifenutra.com website have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.
This product is not intended to diagnose, prevent, treat, or cure any disease.
Copyright , New Life Nutraceuticals, LLC
Site creation by CompTutor