Migraine, depression, Alzheimer's and lipid metabolism

Migraine, with its variety of symptoms associated with aberrant neuronal activation, is linked to abnormal metabolism of a class of bioactive lipids in an important study just published in the journal Neurology. Sphingolipids are involved in a variety of functions in mammalian systems including cell membrane formation, signaling, apoptosis, energy balance and inflammation. The authors set out to assess the levels of sphingolipids in circulation in women migraneurs between migraine attacks compared to control subjects. Their data show that altered sphingolipid metabolism clearly distinguished those with episodic migraine (EM) from controls:

"Total ceramide (EM 6,502.9 ng/mL vs controls 10,518.5 ng/mL) and dihydroceramide (EM 39.3 ng/mL vs controls 63.1 ng/mL) levels were decreased in those with EM as compared with controls. Using multivariate logistic regression, each SD increase in total ceramide (odds ratio [OR] 0.07) and total dihydroceramide (OR 0.05) levels was associated with more than 92% reduced odds of migraine. Although crude sphingomyelin levels were not different in EM compared with controls, after adjustments, every SD increase in the sphingomyelin species C18:0 (OR 4.28) and C18:1 (OR 2.93) was associated with an increased odds of migraine. Recursive portioning models correctly classified 14 of 14 randomly selected participants as EM or control."

Brain-liver axis and migraine

These interesting results shed light on a topic that deserves more attention: the role of the brain-liver axis in neuroinflammatory, neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric disorders including migraine. This may be extended to include metabolism of lipids and other bioactive agents on a cellular level. The authors conclude in regard to sphingolipid metabolism and migraine:

"These results suggest that sphingolipid metabolism is altered in women with EM and that serum sphingolipid panels may have potential to differentiate EM presence or absence...This study provides Class III evidence that serum sphingolipid panels accurately distinguish women with migraine from women without migraine."

Clinical note: for practitioners using medicines from the TCM (traditional Chinese medicine) and Ayurvedic systems the 'brain-liver axis' encompasses not just the visceral entity but consonant functions distributed throughout the organism.

Dementia, multiple sclerosis, obesity, and pain

Beyond migraine, a commentary on the study in Medscape Medical News states:

"The authors, led by B. Lee Peterlin, DO, from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, note that neurologic disorders that are the result of severe deficiencies in enzymes that regulate sphingolipid metabolism have long been described (eg, Gaucher disease), and recent studies have suggested that even subtle changes of sphingolipid balance may be involved in dementia, multiple sclerosis, obesity, and pain...Now they also are reporting a study showing changes in sphingolipid levels in patients with migraine, implicating in particular two sphingolipid subtypes: ceramide and sphingomyelin..."Taken together, our findings suggest it is possible that migraine is a neurologic disorder of 'minor' sphingolipid dysmetabolism," they conclude."

Depression and anxiety

Also in addition to migraine, a fascinating paper recently published in Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Molecular and Cell Biology of Lipids reviews the function of neuronal membrane lipids including sphingolipids as a barrier and signaling medium in the brain and their role in depression and anxiety.

"Brain lipids determine the localization and function of proteins in the cell membrane and in doing so regulate synaptic throughput in neurons. Lipids may also leave the membrane as transmitters and relay signals from the membrane to intracellular compartments or to other cells. Here we review how membrane lipids, which play roles in the membrane's function as a barrier and a signaling medium for classical transmitter signaling, contribute to depression and anxiety disorders and how this role may provide targets for lipid-based treatment approaches. Preclinical findings have suggested a crucial role for the membrane-forming n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, glycerolipids, glycerophospholipids, and sphingolipids in the induction of depression- and anxiety-related behaviors."

This opens the door to a class of treatment options...

"These polyunsaturated fatty acids also offer new treatment options such as targeted dietary supplementation or pharmacological interference with lipid-regulating enzymes. While clinical trials support this view, effective lipid-based therapies may need more individualized approaches. Altogether, accumulating evidence suggests a crucial role for membrane lipids in the pathogenesis of depression and anxiety disorders; these lipids could be exploited for improved prevention and treatment."

Alzheimer's disease

A review in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease discusses the metabolism and the presence in biofluids of sphingolipids and other lipids in Alzheimer's disease (AD):

"With the difficulties of studying the brain directly, it is hoped that identifying the effect of AD on the metabolite composition of biofluids will provide insights into underlying mechanisms of pathology...Sphingolipid, antioxidant, and glutamate metabolism were found to be strongly associated with AD and were selected for detailed investigation of their role in pathogenesis. In plasma, two ceramides increased and eight sphingomyelins decreased with AD, with total ceramides shown to increase in both serum and cerebrospinal fluid. In general antioxidants were shown to be depleted, with oxidative stress markers elevated in a range of biofluids in patients suggesting AD produces a pro-oxidative environment. Shifts in glutamate and glutamine and elevation of 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal suggests peroxidation of the astrocyte lipid bilayer resulting in reduced glutamate clearance from the synaptic cleft, suggesting a excitotoxicity component to AD pathology; however, due to inconsistencies in literature reports, reliable interpretation is difficult."

In addition to defective clearance of amyloid beta, tau proteins and glutamate, altered sphingolipid metabolism emerges as a significant factor.

"The present review has shown that metabolite shifts in biofluids can provide valuable insights into potential pathological mechanisms in the brain, with sphingolipid, antioxidant, and glutamate metabolism being implicated in AD pathology."

Sphingolipids in food

Sphingolipids are in a variety of foods and, though not known to be an 'essential' nutrient, have functional effects as discussed in a paper published in the The Journal of Nutrition. The authors state:

"There is no known nutritional requirement for sphingolipids; nonetheless, they are hydrolyzed throughout the gastrointestinal tract to the same categories of metabolites (ceramides and sphingoid bases) that are used by cells to regulate growth, differentiation, apoptosis and other cellular functions...both complex sphingolipids and their digestion products (ceramides and sphingosines) are highly bioactive compounds that have profound effects on cell regulation. This article reviews the structures of sphingolipids, their occurrence in food, digestion and metabolism, biochemical functions and apparent roles in both the etiology and prevention of disease."

In regard to their functional role:

"Studies with experimental animals have shown that feeding sphingolipids inhibits colon carcinogenesis, reduces serum LDL cholesterol and elevates HDL, suggesting that sphingolipids represent a “functional” constituent of food. Sphingolipid metabolism can also be modified by constituents of the diet, such as cholesterol, fatty acids and mycotoxins (fumonisins), with consequences for cell regulation and disease. Additional associations among diet, sphingolipids and health are certain to emerge as more is learned about these compounds. "

The authors offer a table showing sphingolipid levels in various foods.