ABSTRACT
There has been a marked surge in interest during the past decade for n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFA, omega-3 fatty acids) to serve as essential nutrients for human health as well as to play a potential role in the prevention and management of various chronic disorders, including cardiovascular disease (CVD), neurological disorders, and others. The present brief review will focus upon docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n-3) with respect to dietary intakes, metabolism and functioning, as well as various clinical conditions in which an insufficiency of DHA has been implicated in the specific disorder. While DHA is consumed primarily in the form of fish and fish oils, which contain varying mixtures of DHA plus eicosapentaenoic
acid (EPA, 20:5n-3), this review will focus on DHA. Plant-based food sources, including vegetable oils, are important sources of the n-3 PUFA known as alphalinolenic acid (LNA, 18:3n-3); however, these sources are lacking in DHA. The present review will restrict discussions on LNA with respect to its potential to give rise to some DHA in mammalian tissues via metabolic conversion.
