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Hydrogenated Coconut Oil and Tissue Fatty Acids in EFA-depleted and EFA-supplemented Rats¹

Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720

To study effects of high levels (25%) of hydrogenated coconut oil (HCO) on tissue EFA levels during development of EFA deficiency, male weanling rats were fed the following EFA-deficient diets: 0 fat-20% casein; 25% HCO-20% casein; 25% HCO-26% casein. The EFA-deficient diets containing HCO produced more severe growth retardation and skin symptoms after 4 weeks than did the fat-free diet. However, liver, heart and carcass levels of linoleate, arachidonate and eicosatrienoate with the HCO diets did not differ from levels with the fat-free diet. Thus, more severe external symptoms of EFA deficiency at 4 weeks could not be related to greater alterations in EFA levels. After 8 weeks, when the deficient groups fed HCO were in poor condition, tissue EFA levels were somewhat lower than with the fat-free group, but these differences were not statistically significant except for liver arachidonate (wt%) in the 25% HCO-26% casein group (0.02 < P < 0.05). Groups fed 5% corn oil-20% casein, 5% corn oil-20% HCO-20% casein, or 5% corn oil-20% HCO-26% casein diets grew equally well. In all groups fed HCO, carcass laurate plus myristate (wt%) was high (ca. 25%), and long-chain unsaturated fatty acids decreased. Laurate plus myristate in liver and heart fatty acids remained low (under 6%). Liver glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and fatty acid synthetase activities were higher in the deficient groups fed HCO than in the groups fed corn oil plus HCO.

KEY WORDS: • essential fatty acids • hydrogenated coconut oil • hepatic lipogenesis

¹ Supported in part by National Institutes of Health, USPHS Grant AM 12024. Part of the data from this study was presented at the April, 1971, meeting of the American Institute of Nutrition in Chicago, cf. M. A. Williams, K. T. Tamai, D. J. McIntosh and I. Hincenbergs, Federation Proc. 30: 520 (abstr. 1818).

Manuscript received 27 August 1971.