title: Short-term effects of dietary fats on the lipid composition and desaturase activities of rat liver microsomes.
abstract: Diets supplemented with 10% coconut, olive or sunflower oil were given to rats at weaning. After two, four and six days, the lipid composition and desaturase activities of liver microsomes were measured. The percentage of oleic acid and delta 9-desaturase activity were increased in animals fed an olive oil diet while animals given sunflower oil showed the highest content of linoleic and polyunsaturated n-6 fatty acids. On day 6, olive oil-fed rats had the highest levels of 22:6 n-3 in the phosphatidylethanolamine fraction. Saturated fatty acids were similar among dietary groups, despite the marked differences in the saturated fatty acid content of the three oils. Polyunsaturated n-6 and n-3 fatty acids decreased during the six days of feeding with coconut oil. Our results show that liver microsome membranes respond to different dietary fatty acids sources by changes in enzyme activities and relative content of some fatty acids after a period of dietary manipulation as brief as 6 days.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology School of Pharmacy, University of Granada, Spain.
authors.forename: M D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Girón
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lara
authors.forename: M D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Suárez
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004041:Dietary Fats / Q000494:pharmacology*; D044943:Fatty Acid Desaturases / Q000378:metabolism*; D008055:Lipids / Q000737:chemistry*; D008297:Male; D008560:Membrane Fluidity / Q000187:drug effects; D008862:Microsomes, Liver / Q000187:drug effects / Q000201:enzymology*; D010713:Phosphatidylcholines / Q000737:chemistry; D010714:Phosphatidylethanolamines / Q000737:chemistry; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013230:Stearoyl-CoA Desaturase / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D004041:Dietary Fats; D008055:Lipids; D010713:Phosphatidylcholines; D010714:Phosphatidylethanolamines; D044943:Fatty Acid Desaturases; D013230:Stearoyl-CoA Desaturase