Effects of long-term feeding of marine oils with different positional distribution of eicosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids on lipid metabolism, eicosanoid production, and platelet aggregation in hypercholesterolemic rats

Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) were distributed mainly in the sn-1,3 positions of seal oil triglyceride and in the sn-2 position of squid oil triglyceride. Seal oil-rich or squid oil-rich fats having constant saturated/monounsaturated/polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) and n−6/n−3 PUFA ratios were fed to exogenously hypercholesterolemic rats for 160 d. The control fat contained linoleic acid as the sole PUFA. Before starting the experimental diets, rats were orally treated with high doses of vitamin D for 4 d to accelerate atherogenesis. The percentage of arachidonic acid in phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylethanolamine of liver, platelets, and aorta was lower in the marine oil groups than in the control group, seal oil being more effective than squid oil. Maximal platelet aggregation induced by collagen was significantly lower both marine oil groups. Platelet thromboxane (TX) A₂ production induced by collagen or thrombin was markedly reduced by feeding seal or squid oils, the reduction being more pronounced in the seal oil than in the squid oil group. Aortic prostacyclin (PGI₂) production was the same among the three groups. The ratio of the productions of aortic PGI₂ and platelet TXA₂ was significantly higher in the seal oil than in the control group. Although there was no difference in intimal thickness among the three groups, the aortic cholesterol content was significantly lower in the marine oil groups than in the control group. These results showed that the main effects in rats of the different intramolecular distributions of EPA and DHA in dietary fats were on arachidonic acid content in tissue phospholipids and on platelet TXA₂ production.