Abstract
To investigate the effects of a dam's dietary elaidic acid (EA) intake during pregnancy and lactation on the fatty acid composition of plasma, erythrocyte membrane, and brain in rat pups, we fed two groups of dams either a soybean oil diet (SOD) or a shortening diet (SHD) containing soybean oil (10%) or shortening (10%), respectively. Although EA was not detected in the SOD, EA accounted for 25.3% of all fatty acid content in the SHD. On day 8 after birth, the EA levels in the stomach, plasma, and erythrocyte membrane of pups nursed by the dams fed the SHD were 11.6 ± 1.03%, 7.18 ± 1.20%, and 5.82 ± 1.00%, respectively. Although on day 8 after birth the EA level of the brains of pups nursed by SHD-fed dams was 0.56 ± 0.24%, EA was not detected on day 21 or day 82 after birth. These results suggest that EA intake during pregnancy and lactation supplies EA to plasma, remains in the erythrocyte membrane of pups, and moves into the brain in early infancy.
Highlights
Trans fatty acids (TFAs) are created from vegetable oils through hydrogenation
No significant difference in the total food intake of the dams was observed between the soybean oil diet (SOD) and shortening diet (SHD) groups
Level of monounsaturated fatty acid, as well as of n-6 and n-3 fatty acids, was lower in the stomachs of pups in both groups than the levels of the same fatty acid composition of either diet. We considered that this phenomenon happened because of the increased ratio of saturated fatty acid in the stomachs of the pups
Summary
Trans fatty acids (TFAs) are created from vegetable oils through hydrogenation. Elaidic acid (EA; C18:1) is the principal TFA often found in partially hydrogenated vegetable oils, margarine, and shortening [1, 2]. Young people in Japan have come to prefer a Western-style diet, and more than 29% of the calories consumed by Japanese people are provided by fat [3]. The consumption of trans fats increases the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) by raising the levels of LDL cholesterol and lowering the levels of HDL cholesterol [2, 4, 5]. It has been reported that an elevated TFA blood cell content increased the risk of acute coronary syndromes (ACS) [6, 7]
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