Fish Oil Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Fish Oil, including details on omega-3, dosage, health benefits, diet. | ||||||||
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alpha-Linolenic acid does not contribute appreciably to docosahexaenoic acid within brain phospholipids of adult rats fed a diet enriched in docosahexaenoic acid.Demar JC, Ma K, Chang L, Bell JM, Rapoport SI Brain Physiology and Metabolism Section, National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892, USA. Adult male unanesthetized rats, reared on a diet enriched in both alpha-linolenic acid (alpha-LNA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), were infused intravenously for 5 min with [1-(14)C]alpha-LNA. Timed arterial samples were collected until the animals were killed at 5 min and the brain was removed after microwaving. Plasma and brain lipid concentrations and radioactivities were measured. Within plasma lipids, > 99% of radioactivity was in the form of unchanged [1-(14)C]alpha-LNA. Eighty-six per cent of brain radioactivity at 5 min was present as beta-oxidation products, whereas the remainder was mainly in 'stable' phospholipid or triglyceride as alpha-LNA or DHA. Equations derived from kinetic modeling demonstrated that unesterified unlabeled alpha-LNA rapidly enters brain from plasma, but that its incorporation into brain phospholipid and triglyceride, as in the form of synthesized DHA, is < or = 0.2% of the amount that enters the brain. Thus, in rats fed a diet containing large amounts of both alpha-LNA and DHA, the alpha-LNA that enters brain from plasma largely undergoes beta-oxidation, and is not an appreciable source of DHA within brain phospholipids. Published 11 August 2005 in J Neurochem, 94(4): 1063-76.
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