Inflammation control gets fishy

A new study explains how a diet high in oily fish like salmon and mackerel improves inflammatory conditions, particularly in combination with low doses of aspirin. On page 713, Arita et al. decipher the structure of an antiinflammatory lipid in humans that is derived from an essential fatty acid in fish oil.

Fatty fish contain large amounts of omega-3 fatty acids—diet-derived essential fatty acids known to benefit patients with cardiovascular disease and arthritis. This group recently identified a new class of aspirin-triggered bioactive lipids, called resolvins, the activity of which may in part explain the beneficial effects of omega-3 fatty acids. Resolvins are synthesized from the omega-3 fatty acids by cellular enzymes and are potent counterregulators of inflammation in mice. The main bioactive component of this class of lipids was...