Dysregulation of myelin sulfatides is a risk factor for cognitive decline with age. Vitamin K is present in high concentrations in the brain and has been implicated in the regulation of sulfatide metabolism. Our objective was to investigate the age-related interrelation between dietary vitamin K and sulfatides in myelin fractions isolated from the brain regions of Fischer 344 male rats fed one of two dietary forms of vitamin K: phylloquinone or its hydrogenated form, dihydrophylloquinone for 28 days. Both dietary forms of vitamin K were converted to menaquinone-4 in the brain. The efficiency of dietary dihydrophylloquinone conversion to menaquinone-4 compared to dietary phylloquinone was lower in the striatum and cortex, and was similar to those in the hippocampus. There were significant positive correlations between sulfatides and menaquinone-4 in the hippocampus (phylloquinonesupplemented diet -12mo and 24mo; dihydrophylloquinone -supplemented diet -12mo) and cortex (phylloquinone-supplemented diet -12mo and 24 mo). No significant correlations were observed in the striatum. Furthermore, sulfatides in the hippocampus were significantly positively correlated with MK-4 in serum. This is the first attempt to establish and characterize a novel animal model that exploits the inability of dietary dihydrophylloquinone to convert to brain menaquinone-4 to study the dietary effects of vitamin K on brain sulfatide in brain regions controlling motor and cognitive functions. Our findings suggest that this animal model may be useful for investigation of the effect of the dietary vitamin K on sulfatide metabolism, myelin structure, and behavior functions.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.