Science Market Update

 Researchers at the Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) may have found a way to reduce brain damage caused by a stroke or stroke-like event.  In a study funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, 10-day-old mice that had an hypoxic (lack of oxygen) or ischemic (lack of blood) brain injury were treated with a fat emulsion containing either DHA or EPA—omega-3 fatty acids. The researchers evaluated the mice’s neurological function 24 hours and 8 to 9 weeks after the brain injury. They discovered that the mice treated with the DHA omega-3 fatty acids had a significant reduction in brain injury. This did not hold true for those treated with EPA-omega 3. The DHA group also had significantly better results in multiple brain functions during the 8 and 9 weeks evaluation compared to the EPA-treated mice and the control group which went untreated.