Study Finds Role of Biosynthetic Fatty Acid Pathway Insufficiencies in Age-Related Macular Degeneration

LSU Health Sciences Center announced the publication of findings that suggest that age-related macular degeneration (AMD) decreases an essential fatty acid, preventing the formation of a class of protective molecules and reducing repair potential.

The research was led by Nicolas Bazan, MD, who is Boyd Professor, Ernest C. and Yvette C. Villere Chair for the Study of Retinal Degeneration, and Director of the Neuroscience Center of Excellence at LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine. The research was supported by the National Eye Institute of the National Institutes of Health and the Eye, Ear, Nose & Throat Foundation of New Orleans.

The findings were published by William C. Gordon, PhD, et al, online in Experimental Eye Research.

The study showed that AMD decreases peripheral retinal docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) 22:6 in rod photoreceptor cells, limiting the elongation of fatty acids to form very-long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (VLC-PUFAs), according to LSU. VLC-PUFAs are precursors of elovanoids, bioactive chemical messengers made from omega-3 very-long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids.

Elovanoids, which were discovered by the Bazan lab, have been shown to restore the structure and integrity of damaged photoreceptor cells by repairing, remodeling, and regenerating healthy cells. The loss of the neuroprotective precursors of elovanoids in the retina periphery from AMD facilitates uncompensated stress and cell loss, LSU noted in a news release.

“Biosynthetic fatty acid pathway insufficiencies may be a fundamental factor in the onset and progression of macular degenerative diseases leading to blindness,” Dr. Bazan said in the news release. “These findings open important immediate avenues for therapeutic exploration for AMD.”

The investigators also found major differences between genders.

According to the National Institutes of Health, 66% of AMD-affected persons are female. The research found that females have higher DHA 22:6 than males because of estrogen effects. As they age and estrogen decreases, so does DHA 22:6, and as a result, women can become increasingly susceptible to retinal degeneration.

“In AMD, the female retina loses peripheral rod VLC-PUFAs to about 33% less than in males, limiting elovanoid formation and its protective bioactivity,” stated Dr. Bazan.