Dietary essential fatty acids have been shown to regulate behavioral and cognitive functions in rodents. However, the long-term effect on behavior, besides memory and learning, of essential fatty acid deficiency (EFAD), i.e., lack of n-3 and n-6 fatty acids, during the perinatal period has not been investigated. Therefore, pregnant C57Bl/6 mice were given either an EFAD or an isoenergetic control diet from gestational day 16 and throughout lactation. The female offspring were given standard chow from 3 weeks of age, and at 12 to 14 weeks of age, open-field, object recognition, light-dark transition, elevated plus maze, and social interaction tests were performed. The brain glycerophospholipid fatty acid composition was investigated in 3-week-old and adult offspring by gas chromatography. The differences observed in behavior were indicative of lower anxiety in the EFAD mice compared to controls illustrated by more time spent in the open arms of the elevated plus maze (+ 41%, p < .05) and in the light compartment in the light-dark transition test (+ 63%, p < .05). The proportion of total n-3 fatty acids, especially 22:6n-3 in the brain, was lower with a compensatory increase in the proportion of total n-6 fatty acids, foremost 22:5n-6, in the EFAD mice compared to controls at 3 weeks of age. In the adult brains the fatty acid composition was normalized. In conclusion, our data show that EFAD during the perinatal period results in short-term alterations of fatty acid composition in brain and decreased anxiety in adult life.
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