![Omega-3s being studied for serious vision problems](https://img.passeportsante.net/1000x526/2014-03-24/i57156-des-omega-3-a-l-etude-contre-des-troubles-graves-de-la-vue.jpg)
February 11, 2011 – Omega-3 fatty acids may prevent or delay serious vision problems (retinopathy, macular degeneration), a common complication in people with diabetes.
Mike Sapieha, professor at the University of Montreal and researcher attached to the ophthalmology department of the Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital, led the team that conducted clinical trials on mice suffering from retinopathy. According to the results of the study, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), a marine omega-3, had the effect of stopping the abnormal development of small blood vessels in the eye which leads to progressive loss of sight.
Professor Sapieha and his colleagues at Hôpital Maisonneuve-Rosemont are now preparing to put this treatment to the test in human subjects. Having demonstrated that beyond its known anti-inflammatory properties, ADH also has an antiangiogenic effect (which can counter the formation of blood vessels), the Montreal researcher is considering “new treatments for diabetic patients for whom the loss sight is a big concern ”.
In the study conducted on mice, the researchers point out that the antiangiogenic properties of ADH may also prove useful in treating certain cancers in which unbridled vascularity plays an important role in the progression of the disease. and metastasis. This is particularly the case for breast cancer.
Pierre Lefrançois – PasseportSanté.net
1. Sapieha P., Stahl A, Chen J, et al. 5-Lipoxygenase Metabolite 4-HDHA Is a Mediator of the Antiangiogenic Effect of? -3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids. Sci. Transl. Med. 3, 69ra12 (2011).