Abstract
BackgroundOleic acid has been shown to lower high blood pressure and provide cardiovascular protection. Curiosity arises as to whether super olein (SO), red palm olein (RPO) and palm olein (PO), which have high oleic acid content, are able to prevent the development of hypertension.Methodology/Principal FindingsFour-week-old male spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) and Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats were fed 15% SO, RPO or PO supplemented diet for 15 weeks. After 15 weeks of treatment, the systolic blood pressure (SBP) of SHR treated with SO, RPO and PO were 158.4±5.0 mmHg (p<0.001), 178.9±2.7 mmHg (p<0.001) and 167.7±2.1 mmHg (p<0.001), respectively, compared with SHR controls (220.9±1.5 mmHg). Bradycardia was observed with SO and PO. In contrast, the SBP and heart rate of treated WKY rats were not different from those of WKY controls. The SO and PO significantly reduced the increased heart size and thoracic aortic media thickness observed in untreated SHR but RPO reduced only the latter. No such differences, however, were observed between the treated and untreated WKY rats. Oil Red O enface staining of thoracic-abdominal aorta did not show any lipid deposition in all treated rats. The SO and RPO significantly raised serum alkaline phosphatase levels in the SHR while body weight and renal biochemical indices were unaltered in both strains. Serum lipid profiles of treated SHR and WKY rats were unchanged, with the exception of a significant reduction in LDL-C level and total cholesterol/HDL ratio (atherogenic index) in SO and RPO treated SHR compared with untreated SHR.ConclusionThe SO, RPO and PO attenuate the rise in blood pressure in SHR, accompanied by bradycardia and heart size reduction with SO and PO, and aortic media thickness reduction with SO, RPO and PO. The SO and RPO are antiatherogenic in nature by improving blood lipid profiles in SHR.
Highlights
Palm oil is rich in antioxidants and contains a high proportion of palmitic acid as well as considerable amount of oleic and linoleic acids [1] with oleic acid being the major unsaturated fatty acid that constituted up to 40% of the total fatty acid found in palm oil [2]
The super olein (SO), red palm olein (RPO) and palm olein (PO) attenuate the rise in blood pressure in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR), accompanied by bradycardia and heart size reduction with SO and PO, and aortic media thickness reduction with SO, RPO and PO
The SO and RPO are antiatherogenic in nature by improving blood lipid profiles in SHR
Summary
Palm oil is rich in antioxidants and contains a high proportion of palmitic acid as well as considerable amount of oleic and linoleic acids [1] with oleic acid being the major unsaturated fatty acid that constituted up to 40% of the total fatty acid found in palm oil [2]. RPO has similar fatty acid composition as PO and is obtained by modifying the processing techniques of the crude palm oil which involve pretreatment followed by molecular distillation to produce deacidified and deodorized oil that retains as much as 80% of the original carotenoids in addition to a large amount of vitamin E [3,4]. The fractionation process is the major turning point in modern palm oil industry as it brought about an increase in monounsaturated oleic acid with the simultaneous reduction in palmitic acid, the major saturated fatty acid found in palm oil [5]. Curiosity arises as to whether super olein (SO), red palm olein (RPO) and palm olein (PO), which have high oleic acid content, are able to prevent the development of hypertension
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