Nutritional efficacy of Astaxanthin in modulating orexin peptides and fatty acid level during adult life of rats exposed to perinatal undernutrition stress

ABSTRACT

Perinatal undernutrition stress predisposes several disorders in adult life, which could be programed using nutraceuticals. However, the effect of perinatal undernutrition stress on orexin peptides, brain lipids, and its amelioration by a potent antioxidant (Astaxanthin) needs exploration. The present study focussed on the effect of perinatal undernutrition stress on brain fatty acid levels, Orexin peptides A and B, and its amelioration by Astaxanthin.

Twenty-four male Wistar rats (Rattus norvegicus) were allocated to four groups (n = 6) as Normal, Perinatally Undernourished (UN), Astaxanthin treated (AsX, 12mg/kg), and perinatally Undernourished-but-Astaxanthin treated (UNA), and are allowed to grow for 1, 6 and 12 months. The fatty acid and orexin peptides A & B at different brain parts were measured and compared. Orexin peptides were assessed using an ELISA kit. Fatty acid levels were estimated using HP 5890 gas chromatograph. Data were analyzed by ANOVA followed by Tukey’s posthoc test. P < 0.05 was considered significant.

The hair cortisol, Orexin-A, and B were significantly increased (p < 0.001) in the UN group compared to normal and were modulated significantly by AsX in the UNA group. Undernutrition stress during the perinatal period altered the lipid profile, Total SFA, Total MUFA, Total n-3 PUFA, Total n-6 PUFA, n-3: n-6 PUFA, which Astaxanthin effectively modulated at 6 and 12 months of postnatal life. There was no difference between DHA and AA ratio. These results indicate that nutritional enrichment with Astaxanthin during the perinatal period positively contributes to adult health. Further, the mechanism of regulation of brain chemistry by Astaxanthin is warranted.

GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT

KEYWORDS:

• Astaxanthin
• brain fatty acids
• Docosahexaenoic Acid
• foetal programming
• Monounsaturated Fatty Acids‌
• Orexin-A
• Orexin-B
• perinatal undernutrition
• Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids‌
• Saturated Fatty Acids

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Ethics approval

The protocol was approved by the institutional review board animal ethics committee (Ref No: KSHEMA/IAEC/05/2017).

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by Nitte university (Deemed to be University): [grant no NU/REG/S3/2014-15/197].

Notes on contributors

Megha Bhat Agni

Megha Bhat Agni MSc, working as Senior Research Fellow for ICMR funded project and pursuing PhD in the Department of Physiology, KS Hegde Medical Academy, Nitte (Deemed to be University), Karnataka, India.

Pramukh Subrahmanya Hegde

Pramukh Subrahmanya Hegde MSc, working as Junior Research Fellow for NUFR2, Nitte (Deemed to be University) funded resarch project and pursuing PhD in the Department of Physiology, KS Hegde Medical Academy, Nitte (Deemed to be University), Karnataka, India.

Harshini Ullal

Dr. Harshini Ullal PhD, working as Assistant Professor in the Department of Biotechnology, NMAM Institute of Technology, Nitte (Deemed to be University), Karnataka, India.

K.M. Damodara Gowda

Dr. K. M. Damodara Gowda PhD, working as Associate Professor in the Department of Physiology, KS Hegde Medical Academy, Nitte (Deemed to be University), Karnataka, India. Also, the Principal Investigator of ICMR, DST, and Nitte University funded research projects along with mentoring undergraduate and graduate students.