Effect of flaxseed oil fortified with vitamin e and phytosterols on antioxidant defense capacities and lipids profile in rats

The main proposal of this study was to evaluate in vivo whether flaxseed oils fortified with micronutrients would have beneficial effects on lipid profile and antioxidant status in high-fat fed rats. Male Wistar rats were fed synthetic diets containing 10% of flaxseed oil (FO), phytosterols (PS) fortified FO (PS-FO), vitamin E (V(E) ) fortified FO (V(E) -FO), V(E) , and PS fortified FO (V(E) -PS-FO), respectively, for 4 wk. The results showed that V(E) fortified FO enhanced the enzymatic (SOD and GPX) and nonenzymatic (GSH and V(E)) antioxidant system, lowered the lipid peroxide (TBARS) concentration compared with FO (P < 0.05). And FO fortified with PS significantly reduced the plasma TG, TC and LDL-C levels, and hepatic TG and TC levels of rats compared with FO (P < 0.05), but had no significant effect on antioxidant defense capacities. Combined addition of V(E) and PS in FO had a synergetic effect. These results indicated that flaxseed oils fortified micronutrients V(E) and PS may contribute to reduce the risk factors of cardiovascular disease (CVD) by improving plasma antioxidant defenses and lipids profiles. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: Flaxseed oil usually contains greater than 50% of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) and is a desire origin for n-3 PUFA. But consuming high dose of n-3 PUFA could lead to oxidative damage through free radical-chain reaction in cellular and subcellular membranes. Our studies showed that a regular intake of V(E) and PS fortified flaxseed oils increased antioxidant defenses and ameliorated lipids profile in high-fat fed rats, and these indicated that the flaxseed oil fortified with these micronutrients might reduce the incidence of CVD.