Increased dietary fat prevents sleep deprivation-induced immune suppression in rats

Background and Purpose: Fatty acid composition of rodent diets can affect b aseline immune function as measured in vitro and in vivo. Stress, in a vari ety of forms, can also affect immune function. Possible interaction between diet and other stressors has not been fully explored. We examined the inte raction between sleep deprivation stress and dietary fatty acid composition in altering lymphocyte responses to mitogen stimulation. Methods: Rats were fed diets containing various sources of fatty acids, the n were subjected to sleep deprivation, Splenocytes were harvested and assay ed for responsiveness to various mitogens, using a 72-h proliferation assay , Results: Rats subjected to sleep deprivation experienced significant suppre ssion of in vitro proliferative response to various mitogens. This immune s uppression was dependent on duration of sleep deprivation, Feeding sleep-de prived rats a diet enriched in fatty acids abrogated the effect of sleep de privation. Conclusions: The fat content of rodent diets can have a marked effect on ba seline and stress-modulated immune responses.