N-3 fatty acids inhibit vascular calcification via the p38-mitogen-activated protein kinase and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma pathways. Circ Res 98: 727

Fish oil supplementation is associated with lower risk of coronary artery disease in humans, and it has been shown to reduce ectopic calcification in an animal model. How-ever, whether N-3 fatty acids, active ingredients of fish oil, have direct effects on calcification of vascular cells is not clear. In this report, we investigated the effects of eicosa-pentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) on osteoblastic differentiation and mineralization of calcify-ing vascular cells (CVCs), a subpopulation of bovine aortic medial cells that undergo osteoblastic differentia-tion and form calcified matrix in vitro. Results showed that N-3 fatty acids inhibited alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and mineralization of vascular cells, suggesting that they directly affect osteoblastic differentiation in vascular cells. By Western blot analysis, DHA activate