Research on the accumulation process of main fatty acids in Eucommia seeds / 中国药学杂志

OBJECTIVE: To study the accumulation process of main fatty acids in Eucommia ulmoides seeds. METHODS: Gas chromatography was used to determine the change of the fatty acid composition in Huazhong No.6 Eucommia ulmoides seeds in the process of development. RESULTS: The fatty acids in Eucommia ulmoides seeds were mainly composed of palmitic acid, stearic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, and α-linolenic acid, among which α-linolenic acid had the highest content followed by oleic acid, and stearic acid had the lowest one. CONCLUSION: During seed development, the contents of palmitic acid and oleic acid are higher in the early period of grain development, but gradually drop with the maturation of the grains. The content of stearic acid also declines with the gradual maturation of the grain. On the contrary, the contents of α-linolenic acid and linoleic acid keep rising as the grains mature.

Fatty Acid Content in Perilla Cultivars and Commercial Oils Determined by GC Analysis

The content analysis of fatty acids in Perilla cultivars and commercial oils is conducted through gas chromatography with a flame ionization detector. Results show that Perilla cultivars, such as Deulsaem and Daesil, contain high amounts of α-linolenic acid (262.22 and 261.97 mg/g, respectively). Among commercial oils, Perilla oil contains a higher amount of α-linolenic acid (515.20 mg/g). Accordingly, α-linolenic acid is a major fatty acid of Perilla cultivars and oil. Therefore, Perilla cultivars could be used as a food supplement for nutritional and pharmaceutical purposes.

A study on the relationship between serum fatty acids and blood pressure among hypertension patients / 预防医学

Objective To explore the relationship between serum fatty acids and blood pressure among hypertension patients.Methods A total of 93 primary hypertension patients were recruited.Serum fatty acids were determined with capillary gas chromatography.Results There was a statistically significant difference in serum fatty acids composition between male and female patients.Serum compositions of C20:5n -3(4.68% ±1 .36% vs.4.01 % ±1 .22%),C22:6n -3(2.03% ±0.73% vs.1 .62% ±0.54%),total n -3 polyunsaturated fatty acids(8.1 3% ±1 .87% vs.7.08% ± 1 .43%),C20:4n -6(6.1 3% ±1 .66% vs.5.31 % ±1 .25%)and n -3 to n -6 ratio (0.24% ±0.07% vs.0.20% ± 0.05%)among males were significantly higher than that of females,while C1 8:3n -6 (0.45% ±0.1 7% vs.0.58% ± 0.29%)and C20:3n -6 (1 .39% ±0.29% vs.1 .60% ±0.49%)compositions in serum were significantly lower in males.Serum composition of C1 8:3n -3 was significantly negatively correlated to systolic blood pressure (r =-0.23,P =0.03)and pulse pressure (r =-0.23,P =0.03).Conclusion Increased serum composition of C1 8:3n -3 is associated with decreased systolic and pulse pressure.

Effects of perilla oil on the insulin sensitivity-related gene expression in skeletal muscle in insulin resistant rats / 中国比较医学杂志

Objective This study aims to investigate the effects of high-fat diet rich in perilla oil on the insulin sensitivity-related gene expression in skeletal muscle in insulin resistant rats.Methods The insulin resistant ( IR) rat models were randomly divided into 2 groups, including high fat group ( HF) and perilla oil ( PO) intervention group fed with 20%substitution of lard energy in the HF.The insulin sensitivity of rats was measured after 4 weeks.Theα-linolenic acid ( ALA) content of PO in the rat plasma were analyzed by gas chromatograph.Real-time PCR was applied to measure glucose transporter 4 ( GLUT4 ) and insulin receptor substrate-1 ( IRS-1 ) mRNA, and Western blot assay was used for detecting the expression of GLUT4 and IRS-1 in the skeletal muscle.Results At the gene and protein levels, PO remarkably reduced the level of IRS-1 and upregulated the level of GLUT4 with increasing intake of ALA and serum ALA content in IR rats.The results of hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp test showed no significant difference between the two groups.Conclusions The results of our study suggest that consumption of n-3 PUFA at levels that can typically be found in the diet fed to IR rats in the form of ALA (0.556 g/d) may not improve insulin sensitivity, even though regulating the expression of GLUT4 and IRS-1 in the skeletal muscle.

Modulatory effects of α- linolenic acid on generation of reactive oxygen species in elaidic acid enriched peritoneal macrophages in rats.

Fatty acids are known to influence the ability of macrophages to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS). However the effect of elaidic acid (EA, 18:1 trans fatty acid) on ROS generation is not well studied. Rat peritoneal macrophages were enriched with elaidic acid by incubating the cells with 80 µM EA. The macrophages containing EA generated higher amounts of superoxide anion (O2·-), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and nitric oxide (NO˙) by 54, 123 and 237%, respectively as compared to control cells which did not contain EA. To study the competition of other C18 fatty acids with EA macrophages were incubated with EA along with stearic acid (18:0), oleic acid (18:1), linoleic acid (18:2) and α- linolenic acid (ALA, 18:3). ALA significantly reduced the incorporation of EA into macrophage lipids. This also significantly reduced the generation of O2· -, H2O2, NO˙ by macrophages. Studies were also conducted by feeding rats with diet containing partially hydrogenated vegetable fat (PHVF) as a source for EA and linseed oil (LSO) as a source for ALA. The rats were fed AIN-93 diet containing PHVF with 17% EA and incremental amounts of linseed oil for 10 weeks. The peritoneal macrophages from rats fed partially hydrogenated vegetable fat generated higher levels of O2·-, H2O2, NO˙ by 46, 161 and 76% respectively, when compared to rats fed control diets containing ground nut oil. Macrophages from rats fed PHVF with incremental amounts of LSO produced significantly lower levels ROS in a dose dependent manner. Thus ALA reduces the higher levels of ROS generated by macrophages containing EA.

Effects of Spa Therapy Combined with Dietary Supplementation with n-3 Fatty Acids on Bronchial Asthma / 日本温泉気候物理医学会雑誌

N-3 fatty acids are reportedly effective for asthma. In addition, spa therapy has been reported to be effective for patients with asthma. In the present study, the effects of spa therapy combined with perilla seed oil-rich diet (rich in n-3 fatty acid) were examined on asthma. A total of 14 asthmatic patients had a complex spa therapy and consumed a perilla seed oil-rich diet-rich in α-linolenic acid (α-LNA) for 8 weeks. Generation of leukotriene (LT) C4 by leucocytes, respiratory function were analyzed. The generation of LTC4 by leucocytes decreased significantly for 2, 4 and 8 weeks (P<0.05). Peak expiratory flow (PEF) values increased significantly for 2, 4, 6 and 8 weeks (P<0.05). The values of ventilatory parameters [forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV₁), forced expiratory flow after 25% of expired FVC (FEF₂₅), forced expiratory flow after 75% of expired FVC (FEF₇₅), mean expiratory flow during the middle half of the FVC (FEF_25-75)] revealed a significant increase after 4 and 8 weeks of the modified diet (P<0.05). The results suggest that spa therapy combined with a perilla seed oil-rich diet are effective in the treatment of asthma in terms of its ability to suppress LTC4 generation by leucocytes, and in inducing an improvement of pulmonary function.