The Supplementation of Docosahexaenoic Acid-Concentrated Fish Oil Enhances Cognitive Function in Puppies

SIMPLE SUMMARY: The docosahexaenoic fatty acid, derived from marine sources such as algae and cold-water fish, can be widely incorporated into the brain, especially during the cerebral developmental phase, directly influencing the individual’s cognitive function. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of docosahexaenoic fatty acid supplementation in puppies on cognitive function, through the object discrimination test, which measures the ability of learning. Twelve 3-month-old puppies were used, distributed into two groups of six animals each: the Control Group (CG), without supplementation, and the Experimental Group (EG), with docosahexaenoic acid-concentrated fish oil supplementation. The duration of the study was 3 months; therefore, the animals were evaluated before the beginning (T0) and 30 (T1), 60 (T2) and 90 days (T3) after supplementation. The object discrimination test was composed of two phases, the normal stage and a reverse stage. An effect of supplementation was observed in the normal stage (p = 0.0039), so that animals that received docosahexaenoic acid-concentrated fish oil supplementation had a higher frequency of correct answers (70.12%), when compared to puppies that did not receive the supplementation (62.67%). It is concluded that docosahexaenoic fatty acid supplementation was effective and improved the cognitive function of puppies. ABSTRACT: Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) has an important role in brain development and functionality. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the effects of DHA-concentrated fish oil on the cognitive function of puppies. Twelve 3-month-old puppies were included, blocked by breed and randomly distributed into two groups: the Control Group (CG), without supplementation, and the Experimental Group (EG), supplemented with 40 mg DHA/kg BW/day. The object discrimination test was used, with a normal stage (NS) and a reverse stage (RS), and blood samples were collected to evaluate the serum polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) concentration and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) before (T0) and 30 (T1), 60 (T2) and 90 (T3) days after beginning the study. For the NS, there were effects of treatment (p = 0.0039) and time (p < 0.0001), in which the correct answer frequency in the EG was higher than the CG. The serum eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) + HA concentrations at T1, T2 and T3 were higher than at T0 for the EG (p = 0.0159), in addition, EG showed higher serum EPA + DHA concentrations than CG at T2 (p = 0.0245). The TAC values were similar between the groups (p = 0.3211). It was concluded that the cognitive function of puppies can be enhanced with DHA-concentrated fish oil supplementation without increasing the serum lipid oxidation.