Table 4.
Effects of brain DHA content and reproductive status on levels of norepinephrine, dopamine, serotonin, and 5-hydroxyindole acetic acid (5-HIAA) in specific brain regions.
| Norepinephrine | Dopamine | Serotonin | 5-HIAA | 5-HIAA/5-HT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reproductive status/Brain DHA content | (ng/mg protein) | ||||
| Frontal Cortex | |||||
| Virgin – Normal DHA | 3.5 ± 0.11 | 1.1 ± 0.34 | 3.3 ± 0.13 | 3.7 ± 0.11 | 1.1 ± 0.06 |
| Virgin – Decreased DHA | 3.2 ± 0.13 | 0.91 ± 0.22 | 2.9 ± 0.08* | 3.9 ± 0.11 | 1.3 ± 0.05 |
| Parous – Normal DHA | 2.9 ± 0.11* | 0.77 ± 0.19 | 2.7 ± 0.09* | 4.2 ± 0.27 | 1.6 ± 0.13* |
| Parous – Decreased DHA | 3.3 ± 0.12 | 0.71 ± 0.03 | 3.5 ± 0.10†‡ | 4.3 ± 0.23 | 1.2 ± 0.07‡ |
| Hypothalamus | |||||
| Virgin – Normal DHA | 16.1 ± 0.48 | 4.0 ± 0.16 | 5.6 ± 0.31 | 8.2 ± 0.51 | 1.5 ± 0.11 |
| Virgin – Decreased DHA | 14.3 ± 0.57 | 3.9 ± 0.26 | 4.9 ± 0.37 | 9.0 ± 0.55 | 2.0 ± 0.31 |
| Parous – Normal DHA | 18.8 ± 0.58*† | 3.9 ± 0.31 | 5.0 ± 0.36 | 9.9 ± 0.40 | 2.2 ± 0.25 |
| Parous – Decreased DHA | 18.5 ± 0.48*† | 4.3 ± 0.28 | 5.8 ± 0.41 | 9.7 ± 0.31 | 1.7 ± 0.12 |
| Hippocampus | |||||
| Virgin – Normal DHA | 1.4 ± 0.13 | 0.23 ± 0.02 | 1.0 ± 0.08 | 2.1 ± 0.17 | 2.24 ± 0.18 |
| Virgin – Decreased DHA | 1.3 ± 0.10 | 0.21 ± 0.01 | 0.9 ± 0.10 | 2.5 ± 0.17 | 3.02 ± 0.32 |
| Parous – Normal DHA | 1.6 ± 0.14 | 0.23 ± 0.02 | 1.1 ± 0.13 | 2.8 ± 0.25 | 2.85 ± 0.34 |
| Parous – Decreased DHA | 1.8 ± 0.15 | 0.31 ± 0.04 | 1.2 ± 0.13 | 3.0 ± 0.26 | 2.54 ± 0.24 |
| Temporal Lobe | |||||
| Virgin – Normal DHA | 4.4 ± 0.26 | 0.93 ± 0.09 | 3.3 ± 0.30 | 5.8 ± 0.21 | 1.9 ± 0.18 |
| Virgin – Decreased DHA | 4.0 ± 0.27 | 0.87 ± 0.11 | 2.8 ± 0.25 | 6.1 ± 0.31 | 2.5 ± 0.38 |
| Parous – Normal DHA | 4.4 ± 0.29 | 0.96 ± 0.10 | 3.2 ± 0.27 | 6.1 ± 0.34 | 1.8 ± 0.20 |
| Parous – Decreased DHA | 4.8 ± 0.30 | 1.02 ± 0.13 | 3.8 ± 0.39 | 6.2 ± 0.26 | 1.9 ± 0.31 |
| Brain Stem | |||||
| Virgin – Normal DHA | 6.4 ± 0.39 | 0.34 ± 0.04 | 4.4 ± 0.29 | 6.3 ± 0.42 | 1.43 ± 0.06 |
| Virgin – Decreased DHA | 7.3 ± 0.52 | 0.39 ± 0.03 | 5.1 ± 0.25 | 7.4 ± 0.40 | 1.54 ± 0.08 |
| Parous – Normal DHA | 6.4 ± 0.25 | 0.36 ± 0.03 | 4.8 ± 0.07 | 6.3 ± 0.26 | 1.35 ± 0.09 |
| Parous – Decreased DHA | 7.3 ± 0.48 | 0.39 ± 0.04 | 5.5 ± 0.40 | 7.4 ± 0.65 | 1.40 ± 0.09 |
Data are presented as the mean ± SEM (n = 9–11 per group).
*
Different from Virgin – Normal DHA (P<0.05).
†
Different from Virgin - Decreased DHA (P<0.01).
‡
Different from Parous - Normal DHA (P<0.01).