DHA Esterified to Phosphatidylserine or Phosphatidylcholine is More Efficient at Targeting the Brain than DHA Esterified to Triacylglycerol

Scope Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n‐3) is crucial for optimal neuronal development and function, but the brain has a poor capacity to synthesize this fatty acid. When consumed acutely esterified to phosphatidylcholine, DHA is more efficient at targeting the brain than when consumed esterified to triacylglycerol. However, the brain DHA bioavailability of other forms of DHA‐containing phospholipids, after oral ingestion, is unknown. The objective of this study is to compare brain uptake of DHA after acute gavage with different DHA carriers. Methods and results Ten‐week‐old rats were gavaged with 3H‐labeled DHA esterified to phosphatidylcholine (DHA‐PtdCho), phosphatidylethanolamine (DHA‐PtdEtn), phosphatidylserine (DHA‐PtdSer) or triacylglycerol (DHA‐TG). Six hours post‐gavage, the animals were euthanized and radioactivity was quantified in the cortex and serum lipid classes. Radioactivity recovered in cortex total phospholipids was similar between the DHA‐PtdCho and DHA‐PtdSer groups and were 5.8 and 6.7 times higher than in the DHA‐TG group, respectively. Serum total lipid radioactivity was higher in the DHA‐PtdSer group than in the DHA‐PtdCho and DHA‐PtdEtn groups, but not compared to the DHA‐TG group. Conclusion These results suggest that different mechanisms must be present to explain the serum and brain bioavailability differences between DHA‐PtdCho and DHA‐PtdSer, but these require further investigation. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is crucial for brain function, but it is not clear which dietary form is the most efficient at targeting the brain. Here, it is shown that DHA‐phosphatidylcholine (DHA‐PtdCho) or DHA‐phosphatidylserine (DHA‐PtdSer), but not DHA‐phosphatidylethanolamine (DHA‐PtdEtn), are more efficient at targeting the brain than DHA‐triacylglycerol (DHA‐TG) after acute ingestion.