Researchers from the universities of Jaén and the Basque Country, together with the Institute of Experimental Endocrinology of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, have linked the consumption of olive oil with the production of certain neuronal substances that reduce pain known as encephalins. The experiments, carried out on rats, explore possibilities for designing therapeutic strategies to control pain and stress.

The fatty acids that form part of cell membranes vary depending on the diet and can modify the action of the enzymes they contain, such as encephalinases, which are responsible for degrading or inactivating encephalins so that they do not act when they should not. Thus, if the enzyme is active there will be fewer natural opioids present and vice versa. "According to the lipid source, that is to say, the fats in the diet, our pain regulating system and the mechanism for controlling intake can be modified", said Ana Belén Segarra, researcher at the University of Jaén, author of the article, to the Descubre Foundation.

Thus, the researchers have verified the differences in the brain of the mice to those who fed different fats. For example, the brains of those who ingested rich olive oil had a higher content of monounsaturated fatty acids. This modification in the composition of cell membranes changes the activity of the encephalinases housed in them and, therefore, the production of encephaline.

In addition, they have confirmed that enkephalinase activity is related to the level of certain fatty acids. "Thus, the presence of omega-3 fatty acids in the brains of mice fed olive oil varied according to the action of the enzyme. On the other hand, in the group of mice that took coconut oil, saturated fatty acids, detrimental to the development of certain brain functions, are incorporated into their cell membranes. These fats could also be involved in the higher intake of these animals," added the researcher.

In addition to diet, the researchers point out other factors that could have a direct influence on these substances such as the day-night cycle, gender or ovarian cycle. Knowing how enkephalin production works naturally and the action or inhibition of enkephalinase can help the scientific community find more potent analgesics with fewer side effects.

Olive oil as a pain modulator

As the Discover Foundation has explained, pain is nothing more than a defense mechanism in living beings to point out that something is not right. After the alert in the organism some substances are produced that help to reduce it: encephalins. But when there should be pain, encephalinases act, enzymes that are located in brain cells and are responsible for degrading or inactivating the encephalins so that they do not act when they should not.

Encephaline is produced naturally by the body in pleasant situations. Sport or music increase the release of this substance. However, the alteration in encephaline levels is an indicator of neurological problems. The clearest example is Alzheimer's, a disease in which it is overexpressed. In order to know more details in the process of encephaline production, the researchers raised whether the diet could influence. Specifically, whether the type of oil ingested could be a favoring or detrimental factor.

Thus, the experts supplemented the diets of three groups of eight six-week-old adult male rats with three types of fatty acids with different degrees of saturation: fish oil (polyunsaturated), olive oil (monounsaturated) and coconut oil (saturated). During the study, they controlled weight and food intake, and then checked the fatty acid composition of cell membranes and encephalinase activity in the frontal cortex of the brain.

At the end of the 16-week feeding period, the final body weight was similar in all three groups. However, feed intake was significantly higher in coconut-treated rats than in the other two groups. In addition, rats fed a diet enriched with coconut oil had lower encephalinase activity than the group fed olive and fish.

Polyunsaturated fatty acids in the brain, and particularly docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), improve rodent development and cognitive functions. According to experts, DHA deficiency has been linked to learning and memory impairment, dementia and neurodegenerative disorders. In addition, dietary administration improves memory acquisition and improves some symptoms in models of rats with Alzheimer's disease. In contrast, saturated fatty acids such as coconut or palm have been associated with this condition and anxiety-like behaviors.

The work has been developed through the own financing of the research group "Neuroendocrinology and Nutrition" of the University of Jaén.

Source: Mercacei