Inflammation is a natural biological process which acts to eliminate infectious pathogens and promote the repair of damaged tissues. The inflammatory process promotes the transport of leukocytes and plasma to the injured site or point of infection. This proactive way of an organism defending itself involves immune cells and other molecular mediators; however, when this defensive mechanism is not controlled chronic diseases including rheumatoid arthritis, coronary heart disease, cancers and many

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... others are likely to occur. Since the study carried out in Greenland Eskimos in 1970, omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosapentaenoic acid (DHA) have been known to confer positive health benefits. These essential fatty acids are made available to cells through diet and supplementation with fish oils capsules. Dietary supplementation has become necessary as these highly unsaturated fatty acids cannot be synthesised in the human body and are present at low levels in the typical Western diet. Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are converted in-vivo into anti-inflammatory metabolites known as resolvins. The family of resolvins includes E and D series generated from eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) respectively. These metabolites have been shown to be potent anti-inflammatory mediators.Projects were outlined to enhance the understanding of the incorporation of Ω-3 PUFAs into different cell types and the metabolism involved in the conversion of essential fatty acids to biologically active polyunsaturated fatty acids and further conversion through the different metabolism pathways to their corresponding lipid mediators. All projects were carried out as part of the Translational Chemical Biology group at Loughborough University, with the collective focus on the chemical synthesis and biological evaluation of novel naturally informed anti-inflammatory agents.A gas chromatography mass spectrometry method was developed and validated to determine the inco [...]