The omega-3 fatty acid, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), prevents the damaging effects of tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha during murine skeletal muscle cell differentiation

Background. Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) is a -3 polyunsaturated fatty acid with anti-inflammatory and anti-cachetic properties that may have potential benefits with regards to skeletal muscle atrophy conditions where inflammation is present. It is also reported that pathologic levels of the pro-inflammatory cytokine tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α are associated with muscle wasting, exerted through inhibition of myogenic differentiation and enhanced apoptosis. These findings led us to hypothesize that EPA may have a protective effect against skeletal muscle damage induced by the actions of TNF-α. Results. The deleterious effects of TNF-α on C2C12 myogenesis were completely inhibited by co-treatment with EPA. Thus, EPA prevented the TNF-mediated loss of MyHC expression and significantly increased myogenic fusion (p <0.05) and myotube diameter (p <0.05) indices back to control levels. EPA protective activity was associated with blocking cell death pathways as EPA completely attenuated TNF-mediated increases in caspase-8 activity (p <0.05) and cellular necrosis (p <0.05) back to their respective control levels. EPA alone significantly reduced spontaneous apoptosis and necrosis of differentiating myotubes (p <0.001 and p <0.05, respectively). A 2 hour pre-treatment with EPA, prior to treatment with TNF alone, gave similar results. Conclusion. In conclusion, EPA has a protective action against the damaging effects of TNF-α on C2C12 myogenesis. These findings support further investigations of EPA as a potential therapeutic agent during skeletal muscle regeneration following injury. © 2008 Magee et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.