Single measurement of serum phospholipid fatty acid as a biomarker of specific fatty acid intake in middle-aged Japanese men.
OBJECTIVE
To assess the utility of serum phospholipid fatty acid (FA) levels as a biochemical indicator of habitual dietary fatty acid intake in Japanese, whose diet is characterized by low fat intake and high intake of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) of marine origin.


METHODS
Eighty-seven male volunteers from four public health center districts that were part of the Japan Public Health Center based Prospective Study (JPHC Study) cohort I, were included in this study. Habitual intake of fatty acid was obtained by 7 day weighed dietary records four times (in one area only twice) in 1994--1995. Blood was collected twice, in February and August of the same year, and the composition of FA in serum phospholipid was analyzed by gas chromatography. The correlation coefficient between serum phospholipid FA levels and fatty acid intake was calculated.


RESULTS
High correlations were observed for eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which are marine origin n-3 PUFA (r=0.75, 0.49, 0.50, respectively). No significant correlation was observed for saturated fatty acid (SFA), although the monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA), palmitoleic acid and oleic acid intake were moderately correlated (r=0.22, 0.35, respectively). The correlations for EPA, DPA and DHA were similar in both samples collected in February and August.


CONCLUSIONS
These data suggest that in populations with a high and stable over time intake of n-3 PUFA of marine origin, a single measurement of serum phospholipids reflects the ranking of habitual intake of marine origin n-3 PUFA.
Kobayashi
M
M
Epidemiology and Biostatistics Division, National Cancer Center Research Institute East, Kashiwa, Chiba, Japan.
Sasaki
S
S
Kawabata
T
T
Hasegawa
K
K
Akabane
M
M
Tsugane
S
S
D015415:Biomarkers; D002849:Chromatography, Gas; D015331:Cohort Studies; D015930:Diet Records; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids / Q000008:administration & dosage; D015118:Eicosapentaenoic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3 / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010743:Phospholipids / Q000032:analysis / Q000097:blood*; D011446:Prospective Studies
D015415:Biomarkers; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated; D010743:Phospholipids; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids; D015118:Eicosapentaenoic Acid; C026219:docosapentaenoic acid