Abstract
Background/objectives:
Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), which may reduce the risk for coronary heart disease (CHD), can be synthesized at low rates from α-linolenic acid (ALA). The rate-limiting step for this conversion is the Δ6-desaturation of ALA into stearidonic acid (SDA). Thus providing oils rich in SDA may increase endogenous synthesis of EPA, which may subsequently lower serum triacylglycerol concentrations, an effect frequently observed after EPA supplementation. We therefore studied the effects of Echium oil on serum triacylglycerol concentrations and the omega-3 index, which correlate negatively with the risk for CHD.
Subjects/methods:
A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial was conducted, in which 36 healthy overweight and slightly obese subjects daily received 10 g of Echium oil (providing 1.2 g of SDA) or a high oleic acid sunflower oil (HOSO) as control for 6 weeks, with a washout period of at least 14 days. Four subjects dropped out. Differences between periods were tested for statistical significance (P<0.05) using a paired t-test.
Results:
Serum triacylglycerol and other lipid concentrations were not significantly affected by consumption of Echium oil compared with HOSO. Echium oil significantly increased percentage of EPA in red blood cell (RBC) membranes with 0.14±0.25% (mean±s.d.) compared with HOSO (P=0.02). No significant effects on docosahexaenoic acid in RBC membranes or on the omega-3 index were found.
Conclusions:
In healthy overweight and slightly obese subjects, an increased intake of SDA from Echium oil does not lower serum triacylglycerol concentrations. Despite an increase in the percentage of EPA in RBC membranes, the omega-3 index was not changed.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 print issues and online access
$259.00 per year
only $21.58 per issue
Rent or buy this article
Prices vary by article type
from$1.95
to$39.95
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Roth EM, Harris WS . Fish oil for primary and secondary prevention of coronary heart disease. Curr Atheroscler Rep 2010; 12: 66–72.
Yokoyama M, Origas H, Matsuzaki M, Matsuzawa Y, Saito Y, Ishikawa Y et al. Effects of eicosapentaenoic acid on major coronary events in hypercholesterolaemic patients (JELIS): a randomised open-label, blinded endpoint analysis. Lancet 2007; 369: 1090–1098.
Goyens PL, Spilker ME, Zock PL, Katan MB, Mensink RP . Conversion of alpha-linolenic acid in humans is influenced by the absolute amounts of alpha-linolenic acid and linoleic acid in the diet and not by their ratio. Am J Clin Nutr 2006; 84: 44–53.
Yamazaki K, Fujikawa M, Hamazaki T, Yano S, Shono T . Comparison of the conversion rates of alpha-linolenic acid (18:3(n - 3)) and stearidonic acid (18:4(n - 3)) to longer polyunsaturated fatty acids in rats. Biochim Biophys Acta 1992; 1123: 18–26.
Lemke SL, Vicini JL, Su H, Goldstein DA, Nemeth MA, Krul ES et al. Dietary intake of stearidonic acid-enriched soybean oil increases the omega-3 index: randomized, double-blind clinical study of efficacy and safety. Am J Clin Nutr 2010; 92: 766–775.
Surette ME, Edens M, Chilton FH, Tramposch KM . Dietary echium oil increases plasma and neutrophil long-chain (n-3) fatty acids and lowers serum triacylglycerols in hypertriglyceridemic humans. J Nutr 2004; 134: 1406–1411.
Tirosh A, Shai I, Bitzur R, Kochba I, Tekes-Manova D, Israeli E et al. Changes in triglyceride levels over time and risk of type 2 diabetes in young men. Diabetes Care 2008; 31: 2032–2037.
Harris WS, Von Schacky C . The Omega-3 Index: a new risk factor for death from coronary heart disease? Prev Med 2004; 39: 212–220.
Netherlands Centraal begeleidingsorgaan voor de intercollegiale toetsing. Behandeling en preventie van coronaire hartziekten door verlaging van de plasma cholesterolconcentratie. Utrecht, 1998.
Plat J, Mensink RP . Vegetable oil based versus wood based stanol ester mixtures: effects on serum lipids and hemostatic factors in non-hypercholesterolemic subjects. Atherosclerosis 2000; 148: 101–112.
Friedewald WT, Levy RI, Fredrickson DS . Estimation of the concentration of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol in plasma, without use of the preparative ultracentrifuge. Clin Chem 1972; 18: 499–502.
Harris WS, Pottala JV, Vasan RS, Larson MG, Robins SJ . Changes in erythrocyte membrane trans and marine fatty acids between 1999 and 2006 in older Americans. J Nutr 2012; 147: 1297–1303.
Pocock SJ . Clinical Trials. A practical approach. John Wiley & Sons: Hoboken, 1983.
Balk EM, Lichtenstein AH, Chung M, Kupelnick B, Chew P, Lau J . Effects of omega-3 fatty acids on serum markers of cardiovascular disease risk: a systematic review. Atherosclerosis 2006; 189: 19–30.
Sanders TAB, Filippou A, Berry SE, Baumgartner S, Mensink RP . Palmitic acid in the sn-2 position of triacylglycerols acutely influences postprandial lipid metabolism. Am J Clin Nutr 2011; 94: 1433–1441.
Harris WS, Lemke SL, Hansen SN, Goldstein DA, DiRienzo MA, Su H et al. Stearidonic Acid-Enriched Soybean Oil Increased the Omega-3 Index, an Emerging Cardiovascular Risk Marker. Lipids 2008; 43: 805–811.
Krul ES, Lemke SL, Mukherjea R, Taylor ML, Goldstein DA, Su H et al. Effects of duration of treatment and dosage of eicosapentaenoic acid and stearidonic acid on red blood cell eicosapentaenoic acid content. Prostaglandins Leukot Essent Fatty Acids 2012; 86: 51–59.
James MJ, Ursin VM, Cleland LG . Metabolism of stearidonic acid in human subjects: comparison with the metabolism of other n-3 fatty acids. Am J Clin Nutr 2003; 77: 1140–1145.
Lemke SL, Maki KC, Hughes G, Taylor ML, Krul AS, Goldstein DA et al. Consumption of stearidonic acid-rich oil in foods increases red blood cell eicosapentaenoic acid. J Acad Nutr Diet 2013; 113: 1044–1056.
Pawlosky RJ, Hibbeln JR, Novotny JA, Salem N Jr . Physiological compartmental analysis of a-linolenic acid metabolism in adult humans. J Lipid Res 2001; 42: 1257–1265.
Plourde M, Cunnane SC . Extremely limited synthesis of long chain polyunsaturates in adults: implications for their dietary essentiality and use as supplements. Appl Physiol Nutr Metab 2007; 32: 619–634.
Arterburn LM, Hall EB, Oken H . Distribution, interconversion, and dose response of n-3 fatty acids in humans. Am J Clin Nutr 2006; 83: 1467S–1476S.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank M Hulsbosch, H Aydeniz and W Sluijsmans for their technical support, and N Wystyrk for her dietary assistance. Bioriginal Europe Asia b.v., Den Bommel, The Netherlands, funded the study and provided the test products. Bioriginal Europe Asia b.v. had no role in the design, analysis or writing of this article.
Author contribution
RPM designed the research; DJMP conducted the research; DJMP and RPM analysed the data and wrote the paper; RPM had primary responsibility for final content. Both authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Competing interests
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Additional information
Supplementary Information accompanies this paper on European Journal of Clinical Nutrition website
Supplementary information
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Pieters, D., Mensink, R. Effects of stearidonic acid on serum triacylglycerol concentrations in overweight and obese subjects: a randomized controlled trial. Eur J Clin Nutr 69, 121–126 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2014.193
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2014.193
This article is cited by
-
Significance of long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids in human health
Clinical and Translational Medicine (2017)