ABSTRACT In rats, like in human subjects, an insufficient dietary supply of long-chain polyunsaturated ω3 fatty acids leads to hyperlipidemia, visceral obesity, liver steatosis, insulin resistance and hypertension. The present study deals with the age-related alterations of the fatty acid profile in the epiploic and parametrial adipose tissue of ω3-depleted rats. In both control and second generation female ω3-depleted rats of comparable age, significant differences were, as a rule, observed when comparing epiploic to parametrial fat. The ω3-deficient rats were characterized by the virtual absence of ω3 fatty acids, a decreased content of long-chain polyunsaturated ω6 fatty acids, with a low C20:4ω6/C18:2ω6 ratio, an increased content of C12:0, C14:0, C16:0, C16:1ω7 and C18:1ω9, elevated C16:1ω7/C16:0 and C18:1ω9/C18:0 ratios, and a low C20:1ω9/C18:1ω9 ratio. Several of these variables underwent age-related changes in ω3-depleted rats of increasing age (8-9, 15-16 and 22-23 weeks). The prior intravenous injection of an ω3-rich medium-chain triglyceride: fish oil emulsion or a control ω3-poor medium-chain triglyceride: olive oil emulsion 60-120 min before sacrifice also caused, on occasion, significant changes in fatty acid pattern. These findings are compared to those previously documented in the liver triglycerides and phospholipids of the same rats.
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