The Potential Benefits of Omega Fatty Acid Supplementation on Skeletal Muscle Membrane Composition and Function, and Energy Metabolism in Young and Older Men and Women

众所周知，补充OMEGA-3脂肪酸（O3 FA）对人体产生无数积极的生理作用，包括降低血脂和炎症指数，改善抗血栓形成和心血管指数，以及改善认知功能。所有这些作用的共同点是O3 FAs能够改变膜的性质并刺激许多组织中的基因表达。令人惊讶的是，很少有研究O3 FAs对骨骼肌的影响。这个大器官（70公斤的人约28公斤）对于在我们的日常活动中移动身体非常重要，通过使用燃料脂肪和碳水化合物来产生运动所需的能量。骨骼肌也是我们白天消耗的CHO和脂质的重要储存场所。肌肉燃烧碳水化合物和脂质作为燃料的能力在久坐的人中很低，并且随着我们年龄的增长和肌肉质量的减少以及身体活动的减少而减少。加拿大老年人的比例预计将从2005年占总人口的13%增加到2036年的25%，因此这是一个重要的问题。 当低体力活动水平加上在任何年龄消耗过多的食物，以及伴随衰老的肌肉质量损失时，各种生活方式和年龄相关疾病的风险增加。拟议的工作描述了一项研究计划，该计划结合了分子，生物化学和生理学方法，以全面解释O3 FA补充剂对年轻和老年男性和女性人体骨骼肌代谢和功能的假设改善。工作假设是，O3 FA补充剂将增加骨骼肌和全身的静息代谢率（RMR），并将增加骨骼肌在静息和运动情况下燃烧脂肪的能力。它还可以维持骨骼肌质量和全身瘦体重。预计这些变化将在老年男性和女性中最为明显，并部分抵消肌肉质量和功能的丧失，RMR降低以及伴随衰老的燃料使用能力下降。* 拟议的实验是新颖的，将直接研究O3 FA补充剂对人类骨骼肌的影响，因为人类是我们最终想要研究的物种。随着对O3 FA补充剂保护/改善年轻人和老年人骨骼肌功能以及脂肪和碳水化合物代谢的机制有了更清楚的了解，我们将更好地了解它如何纠正/抵消身体活动不足，过量食物消耗和衰老的影响。这些基本信息将帮助我们减少社会中流行的慢性病的发病率。

It is well known that OMEGA-3 fatty acid (O3FA) supplementation exerts a myriad of positive physiological effects in the human body, including lowered blood lipids and inflammatory indices, improved antithrombotic and cardiovascular indices, and improved cognitive function. The common denominator in all these effects is the ability of O3FAs to modify the properties of membranes and to stimulate gene expression in many tissues. Surprisingly, little work has examined the effects of O3FAs on skeletal muscle. This large organ (~28 kg in a 70 kg person) is important for moving the body throughout our daily activities by using the fuels fat and carbohydrate to generate the necessary energy for movement. Skeletal muscle is also an important storage site for the CHO and lipid that we consume during the day. The capacity of muscle to burn carbohydrate and lipid as fuel is low in sedentary individuals and also decreases as we age and lose muscle mass and become less physically active. The proportion of seniors in Canada is predicted to increase from 13% of the total population in 2005 to 25% in 2036, so this is an important concern. When low physical activity levels are coupled with consuming too much food at any age, and the loss of muscle mass that accompanies aging, there is increased risk for a variety of lifestyle and age-related diseases.***The proposed work describes a research program that combines molecular, biochemical, and physiological approaches to comprehensively explain the hypothesized improvements of O3FA supplementation on human skeletal muscle metabolism and function in young and older men and women. The working hypothesis is that O3FA supplementation will increase the resting metabolic rate (RMR) in skeletal muscle and the whole body and will increase the ability of skeletal muscle to burn fat in resting and exercise situations. It may also maintain skeletal muscle mass and whole body lean mass. It is expected that these changes will be most pronounced in older men and women and partially counteract the loss of muscle mass and function, decreased RMR, and decreased ability to use fuel that accompanies aging. ***The proposed experiments are novel and will directly examine the effects of O3FA supplementation on human skeletal muscle, as the human is the species that we ultimately want to investigate. With a clearer understanding of the mechanisms whereby O3FA supplementation protects/improves skeletal muscle function and the metabolism of fat and carbohydrate in both young and older people, we will be in a better position to understand how it corrects/counteracts the effects of physical inactivity, excess food consumption, and aging. This basic information will help us reduce the incidence of the chronic diseases prevalent in our society.**