WIth DHA, it would make sense to use forms in the sn-2 glycerol position as they are incorporated into neural lipid structures more readily
Hey Papa, thanks for the info. The site that you linked to specifically indicates that DHA-EE was better for those with Peroxisomal Biogenesis Disorders which disrupts fat metabolism. Is there any evidence (studies) that it is better for those without such disorders?
Also, there is evidence (in cell studies) that DHA is incorporated into mitochondrial cardiolipin. How would the DHA-EE form affect it's absorption and activity in mitochondria?
Well, DHA-EE is less well studied than plane ol' DHA. My main point overall was that DHA in supplemental form - unless one finds a very specific fish/krill oil that specifies this - is not as efficient for getting DHA into neural lipids; it needs to be in the sn-2 position, which is predominantly in seafood. On a facebook group a guy posted a fish oil in the sn-2 position, but he seemed to have relations to the company or something, idk, it was kinda.... "fishy"
Yet, DHA-EE does have animal evidence and some evidence in other human studies and case studies, though primarily for problems with myelinogenesis:
http://www.ncbi.nlm....ubmed/11944198
Dose-response effect of docosahexaenoic acid ethyl ester on maze behavior and brain fatty acid composition in adult mice.The dose-response effect of dietary docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6 n-3) ethyl ester (EE) on maze-learning ability in mice was studied. Male Crj:CD-1 mice aged three months were fed a) a diet containing 5 g palm oil/100 g diet (control group); b) a diet containing 0.5 g DHA ethyl ester/100 g diet plus 4.5 g palm oil/100 g diet (DHA-EE 0.5% group); c) a diet containing 1 g DHA ethyl ester/100 g diet plus 4 g palm oil/100 g diet (DHA-EEE 1% group); d) a diet containing 2 g DHA ethyl ester/100 g diet plus 3 g palm oil/100 g diet (DHA-EE 2% group) for four months. Maze-learning ability was assessed three months after the start of the experiment. The time required to reach the maze exit and the number of times that a mouse strayed into blind alleys in the maze were measured in three trials, performed every four days. In trial 1, the DHA-EE 0.5%, 1% and 2% groups required less (p < 0.05) time to reach the maze exit, and the DHA-EE 2% group strayed (p < 0.05) into blind alleys fewer times than the control group. In trial 3 performed four days after the second trial, the DHA-EE 2% group needed less (p < 0.05) time to find the exit and spent a fewer (p < 0.05) number of times in blind alleys than did the control group. In the total lipids of plasma and brain of mice fed DHA, increasing intakes of DHA resulted in an increase in DHA levels, with a corresponding decrease in arachidonic acid (20:4 n-6). Improved maze-learning ability in mice fed DHA-EE 2% was associated with higher DHA levels in brain. Our resulted suggest that there are no linear dose-response effects of DHA on maze-learning ability, however, the intake of DHA-EE 2% diet improves learning ability in adult mice as demonstrated by maze performance.
^searching for the full-text on libgen, but it would appear from the abstract that DHA-EE readily impacts neural tissue with it being accrued in the brain.
http://jn.nutrition....30/6/1629.long
Intakes of Dietary Docosahexaenoic Acid Ethyl Ester and Egg Phosphatidylcholine Improve Maze-Learning Ability in Young and Old Mice1
The effect of dietary docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) [22:6 (n-3)] ethyl ester (EE) and egg-phosphatidylcholine (PC) on maze-learning ability in young and old mice was studied. Male Crj:CD-1 mice aged either 3 wk or 14 mo were fed a diet containing 2 g DHA-EE/100 g diet plus 3 g palm oil/100 g diet (DHA-EE Group), 5 g egg-PC/100 g diet (egg-PC Group), 1 g DHA-EE/100 g diet plus 2.5 g egg-PC/100 g diet plus 1.5 g palm oil/100 g diet (DHA-EE + egg-PC Group) or 5 g palm oil/100 g diet (Control Group) for 5 mo. Maze-learning ability was assessed 4 mo after the start of the experiment. The time required to reach the maze exit and the number of times that a mouse strayed into blind alleys in the maze were measured in three trials every 4 d. In trial 2 of young mice, performed on d 4 after the first trial, the DHA-EE group required less (P < 0.05) time to reach the maze exit and DHA-EE and egg-PC groups strayed (P < 0.05) into blind alleys fewer times than the control group. In trial 2 of old mice, the DHA-EE, egg-PC and DHA-EE + egg-PC groups needed less (P < 0.05) time to find the exit and spent a fewer (P < 0.05) number of times in blind alleys than did the control group. The DHA-EE, DHA-EE + egg-PC and egg-PC groups strayed into blind alleys fewer times than the control group in trial 3 of old mice (P < 0.05). Our results suggest that the intake of DHA-EE and the egg-PC diet effectively enhances maze-learning ability and brain functions in old mice.
^Thus, it wasn't only egg-PC or DHA-EE+egg-PC; DHA-EE had benefits all by itself.
I've been contemplating getting a large amount of caprylic acid (which I use on and off) and DHA-EE and using a minimum of 2-3 tbsp caprylic acid (for BHB)/day + 1.1g of DHA from DHA-EE in addition to increasing seafood intake a bit.
Also, I suspect neural and cranial DHA levels can greatly enhance LLLT:
A quantum theory for the irreplaceable role of docosahexaenoic acid in neural cell signalling throughout evolution.
Six hundred million years ago, the fossil record displays the sudden appearance of intracellular detail and the 32 phyla. The "Cambrian Explosion" marks the onset of dominant aerobic life. Fossil intracellular structures are so similar to extant organisms that they were likely made with similar membrane lipids and proteins, which together provided for organisation and specialisation. While amino acids could be synthesised over 4 billion years ago, only oxidative metabolism allows for the synthesis of highly unsaturated fatty acids, thus producing novel lipid molecular species for specialised cell membranes. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) provided the core for the development of the photoreceptor, and conversion of photons into electricity stimulated the evolution of the nervous system and brain. Since then, DHA has been conserved as the principle acyl component of photoreceptor synaptic and neuronal signalling membranes in the cephalopods, fish, amphibian, reptiles, birds, mammals and humans. This extreme conservation in electrical signalling membranes despite great genomic change suggests it was DHA dictating to DNA rather than the generally accepted other way around. We offer a theoretical explanation based on the quantum mechanical properties of DHA for such extreme conservation. The unique molecular structure of DHA allows for quantum transfer and communication of π-electrons, which explains the precise depolarisation of retinal membranes and the cohesive, organised neural signalling which characterises higher intelligence.
The full-text is quite amazing, really.