title: Linoleic acid and linolenic acid: effect on permeability properties of cultured endothelial cell monolayers.
abstract: High circulating plasma levels of free fatty acids may injure endothelial cells, resulting in decreased barrier function of the vascular endothelium. The effect of media supplementation with varying concentrations of either linoleic (C18:2 omega 6) or linolenic acid (C18:3 omega 3) on albumin transfer across cultured endothelial monolayers was studied. A 24-h cell exposure to linoleic but not linolenic acid resulted in a concentration dependent and largely reversible increase in albumin transfer. Both fatty acids and in particular linolenic acid incorporated into cellular phospholipids. In contrast, only supplementation with linoleic but not linolenic acid resulted in an increased incorporation of this fatty acid into cell triglycerides. Similarly, only total cell triglyceride content increased after incubation with linoleic- but not with linolenic-enriched media. These results indicate that cellular enrichment with linoleic but not linolenic acid causes cellular perturbations that may be implicated in atherosclerosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition and Food Science, University of Kentucky, Lexington 40506-0054.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hennig
authors.forename: B A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Watkins
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002463:Cell Membrane Permeability / Q000187:drug effects*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004730:Endothelium, Vascular / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects; D019787:Linoleic Acid; D008041:Linoleic Acids / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008042:Linolenic Acids / Q000494:pharmacology*; D013552:Swine; D017962:alpha-Linolenic Acid
chemical_list: D008041:Linoleic Acids; D008042:Linolenic Acids; D017962:alpha-Linolenic Acid; D019787:Linoleic Acid