Abstract
Apoptosis is a mechanism for eliminating unwanted cells from the cell community in multicelluler organisms. Abnormalities in the regulation of apoptosis may play a part in the etiology of cancer, autoimmune diseases, AIDS and degenerative nerve diseases. About one-half neuronal cells undergo apoptosis during embryogenesis. Developing neurons compete for the specific tropic factors that support neuronal growth and differentiation by suppressing the pathway of apoptosis. However, the question of which molecules function as survival and maintenance factors for neurons remains open. Neurons are known to be highly enriched in lipids long-chain unsaturated fatty acids, especially docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). We examined here the effect of DHA on neuronal survival in cultured B50 cells, which are differentiated to neuronal cells by dibutyryl-cyclic AMP treatment. The results indicate that DHA acts as a survival/maintenance factor for neurons.
