Lipidomics and H2(18)O labeling techniques reveal increased remodeling of DHA-containing membrane phospholipids associated with abnormal locomotor responses in α-tocopherol deficient zebrafish (danio rerio) embryos.

TitleLipidomics and H2(18)O labeling techniques reveal increased remodeling of DHA-containing membrane phospholipids associated with abnormal locomotor responses in α-tocopherol deficient zebrafish (danio rerio) embryos.
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2016
AuthorsMcDougall, MQ, Choi, J, Stevens, JF, Truong, L, Tanguay, RL, Traber, MG
JournalRedox Biol
Volume8
Date Published2016
Abstract

We hypothesized that vitamin E (α-tocopherol) is required by the developing embryonic brain to prevent depletion of highly polyunsaturated fatty acids, especially docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6), the loss of which we predicted would underlie abnormal morphological and behavioral outcomes. Therefore, we fed adult 5D zebrafish (Danio rerio) defined diets without (E-) or with added α-tocopherol (E+, 500mg RRR-α-tocopheryl acetate/kg diet) for a minimum of 80 days, and then spawned them to obtain E- and E+ embryos. The E- compared with E+ embryos were 82% less responsive (p<0.01) to a light/dark stimulus at 96h post-fertilization (hpf), demonstrating impaired locomotor behavior, even in the absence of gross morphological defects. Evaluation of phospholipid (PL) and lysophospholipid (lyso-PL) composition using untargeted lipidomics in E- compared with E+ embryos at 24, 48, 72, and 120hpf showed that four PLs and three lyso-PLs containing docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), including lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC 22:6, required for transport of DHA into the brain, p<0.001), were at lower concentrations in E- at all time-points. Additionally, H2(18)O labeling experiments revealed enhanced turnover of LPC 22:6 (p<0.001) and three other DHA-containing PLs in the E- compared with the E+ embryos, suggesting that increased membrane remodeling is a result of PL depletion. Together, these data indicate that α-tocopherol deficiency in the zebrafish embryo causes the specific depletion and increased turnover of DHA-containing PL and lyso-PLs, which may compromise DHA delivery to the brain and thereby contribute to the functional impairments observed in E- embryos.