Growth and essential fatty acid levels of plasma and liver of suckling rats from mothers fed on fat-free or various fat diets.
The milk fatty acid compositions of mothers fed on a fat-free or various fat diets, and the effects on growth and fatty acid compositions of their pups were studied. Even the milk of essential fatty acid-deficient mothers fed on a fat-free or hydrogenated fat diet contained about 3 and 1.7%, n-6 and n-3 fatty acids, respectively. In the plasma of the suckling pups, however, the proportions of n-6 and n-3 fatty acids rapidly increased to about 20 and 3-5%, respectively, at 1 week after birth. In particular, the PUFAs markedly increased in the liver PC and PE, and the high levels were maintained until weaning. Although the PUFA compositions of suckling pups were influenced with those of maternal diet, small amounts of n-6 and n-3 fatty acids were usually maintained in the plasma and liver. After weaning to the same diets (without PUFAs) as the mothers, however, the n-3 and n-6 fatty acids rapidly decreased and endogenous n-9 eicosatrienoic acid appeared. On the other hand, the growth during suckling was not significantly different among the litters of mothers fed on diets with or without n-3 or n-6 fatty acids. After the weaning, however, the growth was improved in the following order: corn oil, perilla oil > fish oil > fat-free, hydrogenated fat diet group. n-3 fatty acids appeared to be used partially as substitutes for n-6. However, the essentiality was not clear, as the n-3 fatty acids always coexisted with the n-6. Thus, it appeared that small amounts of n-3 and n-6 fatty acids in milk were supplied to the suckling animals regardless of maternal diet and supported growth.
Iritani
N
N
Tezukayama Gakuin College, Sakai, Japan.
Matsumura
Y
Y
Fukuda
H
H
D000818:Animals; D000833:Animals, Suckling / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism*; D004041:Dietary Fats / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D005228:Fatty Acids, Essential / Q000032:analysis* / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D008099:Liver / Q000378:metabolism; D008892:Milk / Q000737:chemistry; D010743:Phospholipids / Q000032:analysis; D010949:Plasma / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar
D004041:Dietary Fats; D005228:Fatty Acids, Essential; D010743:Phospholipids