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ARS Home » Plains Area » Houston, Texas » Children's Nutrition Research Center » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #70267
Title: EFFECT OF ALPHA-LINOLENIC ACID (ALA) INTAKE DURING EARLY LIFE ON NEURODEVELOPMENTAL STATUS OF PRETERM INFANTS

Author
item VOIGT, ROBERT - BAYLOR COLL OF MEDICINE
item Jensen, Craig
item ROZELLE, J - BAYLOR COLL OF MEDICINE
item BROWN, FRANK - BAYLOR COLL OF MEDICINE

Submitted to: American Pediatric Society / The Society for Pediatric Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/6/1996
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; 22:6n-3) and arachidonic acid (AA; 20:4n-6), present in human milk but not in most infant formulas, are essential components of the structural lipids of brain and retina. More optimal indices of neurodevelopmental status have been reported in breast vs formula fed infants. To determine if intake of ALA, the precursor of DHA, affects neurodevelopmental outcome, Bayley Scales of Infant Development (MDI, PDI), Clinical Linguistic and Auditory Milestone Scale (CLAMS), Clinical Adaptive Test (CAT), and the Gross Motor section of the Revised Gesell Developmental Inventory (GM) were administered at 12-15 months of age to 23 preterm infants fed formulas with either 1% or 3.2% of fat as ALA from shortly after birth to 56 weeks post-menstrual age (PMA). DHA content of plasma phospholipids (PL) was higher and AA content was lower at 56 weeks PMA in infants who received the highest ALA intake. The group that received the highest ALA intake, in contrast to term infants fed the same ALA intakes, scored lower on every neurodevelopmental measure (PDI, 16 points (p<0.01); MDI, 8 points (NS); CLAMS, 5 points (NS); CAT, 10 points (NS); GM, 11 points).Across groups, after controlling for size and clinical differences, there were positive correlations between plasma PL AA at 56 weeks PMA and both PDI (p=0.011; r2=46%) and GM (p=0.047, r2=28%). Total plasma PL n-6 fatty acids at 56 weeks PMA also correlated positively with PDI (p=0.002; r2=55%) and GM (p=0.045; r2=28%). Plasma PL DHA (p=0.023; r2=33%) and total n-3 fatty acids (p=0.030; r2=31%) at 56 weeks PMA correlated positively with CLAMS. These data suggest that n-6 and n-3 fatty acid status at 56 weeks PMA may be associated, respectively, with motor and language development in preterm infants.