The relationship of free fatty acid levels with cognitive status and neuroimaging characteristics in adolescents with obesity

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Obesity is a progressive health and economic problem of modern society. Endocrine-metabolic changes in childhood and adolescence have an impact on cognitive status, which is accompanied by changes in the perfusion of gray and white matter of the brain, as well as its architectonics.AIM: Verification of fatty acid (FA) levels in relation to cognitive function and brain neuroimaging data in adolescents with obesity.MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study is a single-center observational one-stage comparative. 60 teenagers aged 10–16 years were selected to participate. The main study group was formed of 34 adolescents with obesity (SDS BMI ≥+2.0), 26 subjects with normal weight made up the control group. The calculation of SDS BMI was performed on the WHO «Anthroplus» calculator. To obtain anthropometric data, a vertical height meter MSK — 233, scales and a soft centimeter tape were used. The levels of free fatty acids in the blood serum were determined by chromatomass spectrometry on the Agilent 7000B detector. For neurocognitive testing, the Montreal Cognitive Function Assessment Scale and the Ray test were used. Contrast-free perfusion magnetic resonance imaging of the brain was performed on a Signa Creator “E” MR tomograph by GE Healthcare, 1.5 Tl, China, by Arterial Spin Labeling. For MR tractography, the GE Sygna Creaton 1.5 Tesla apparatus was used using the method of diffusion imaging with high angular resolution HARDI (High Angular Resolution Diffusion Imaging). Statistical processing of the obtained results was carried out using IBM SPSS Statistics software.RESULTS: According to the results of a comparative analysis, adolescents with obesity were distinguished by an increased content of free LC and a decrease in cognitive functions (p <0.05). A lot of statistically significant correlations of different groups of LC with changes in cognitive characteristics, cerebral blood flow and pathways were also obtained.CONCLUSION: The results obtained confirm the significant role of free fatty acids in the pathogenesis of obesity and indicate the effect of lipotoxicity on morphological changes in the structures of the central nervous system, which can lead to the formation of cognitive disorders.

Keywords

• fatty acids
• children
• obesity
• cerebral perfusion of the brain
• tractography
• cognitive functions