Gc. Burdge et al., Effect of fatty acid supplementation on growth and differentiation of human IMR-32 neuroblastoma cells in vitro, J CELL BIOC, 80(2), 2000, pp. 266-273
Polyunsaturated fatty acids play a critical role in the structure and funct
ion of the developing nervous system. it has been proposed that fatty acids
may effect a variety of biologic processes through the activation of the p
eroxisome proliferator activated receptors (PPARs)-ligand activated transcr
iption factors. In this report, we demonstrate that fatty acids can inhibit
the proliferation of the human neuronal cell line IMR-32. The fatty acids
linoleate, alpha -linoleate, arachidonate, docosahexaenoate, and oleate all
inhibited [H-3]thymidine incorporation of IMR-32 cells after 72 h. Fatty a
cid supplementation also led to the morphologic differentiation of the IMR-
32 cells. Linoleate and arachidonate, fatty acids of the n-6 series, induce
d the most extensive differentiation. Furthermore, the addition of fatty ac
ids to IMR-32 cells led to PPAR activation, suggesting that PPAR activation
may be an important event in fatty acid modulation of IMR-32 cell growth.
In support of this hypothesis, clofibric acid, a specific ligand of PPAR al
pha, also inhibited IMR-32 cell proliferation and strongly induced PPAR act
ivation. Together these results suggest that fatty acids may play an import
ant role in the development of neuronal precursor cells and that activation
of the PPARs may be one pathway by which fatty acids modulate the growth a
nd differentiation of neuronal precursor cells. J. Cell. Biochem. 80. 266-2
73,2000. (C) 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc.