PRESENCE OF SALVIA HISPANICA L. SEED FROM WEANING IS ABLE TO MITIGATE AND PREVENT THE ALTERED LIPID METABOLISM AND GLUCOSE HOMEOSTASIS IN ADULT Off SPRING (EXPOSED TO A NUTRITIONAL CHALLENGE FROM UTERO TO ADULTHOOD)

Seed from Salvia hispanica L. or more commonly known as chia is a traditional food in central and southern America. Currently, it is widely consumed for various health benefits especially in maintaining healthy serum lipid level. Chia is a good source of polyunsaturated fatty acids: omega-3 and omega-6, soluble dietary fiber. It also contains appreciable amount of proteins and phytochemicals. Nutritional value of chia is the reason why it is used in prophylaxis of several noninfectious diseases such as obesity, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), cancer and diabetes. The present work analyzes the effects of dietary chia seeds during postnatal life in offspring exposed to a sucrose-rich diet (SRD) from utero to adulthood. Chia was able to prevent the development of hypertension, liver steatosis, hypertriglyceridemia and hypercholesterolemia. Normal triacylglycerol secretion and triacylglycerol clearance were accompanied by an improvement of de novo hepatic lipogenic and carnitine palmitoyl transferase-1 enzymatic activities, associated with an accretion of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in the total composition of liver homogenate. Glucose homeostasis and plasma free fatty acid levels were improved while visceral adiposity was slightly decreased. These results confirm that the incorporation of chia seed in the diet in postnatal life may provide a viable therapeutic option for preventing/mitigating adverse outcomes induced by an SRD from utero to adulthood.