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Effects of Dietary Fish Oil or Pectin on Blood Pressure and Lipid Metabolism in the DOCA-Salt Hypertensive Rat

Vernon Bond, Oliver Ordor, Geza Bruckner, Polly Webb, Theodore Kotchen, Russell J. Tearney^* and Richard G. Adams^*

Department of Physical Education ^* College of Medicine, Howard University, Washington, D.C. 20059 Department of Clinical Nutrition, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40536 College of Medicine, University of West Virginia, Morgantown, WV 26506

This study investigated the effects of diets containing fish oil or pectin on blood pressure and lipid metabolism in the deoxycorticosterone acetate (DOCA)-salt hypertensive rat. Three groups (8 rats/group) of unilaterally nephrectomized rats were fed for 21 d one of three purified diets: a) 8% fish oil + 2% safflower oil + 5% alpha cellulose (fish oil diet), b) 10% safflower oil + 5% pectin (pectin diet), or c) 10% safflower oil + 5% alpha cellulose (control diet). Each of the diets contained 6% NaCl and all rats received DOCA (30 mg/kg body wt, subcutaneously) twice weekly. Systolic blood pressure of rats fed fish oil was significantly lower (P < 0.05) than that of rats fed the control diet; there was no significant difference between the pectin and control groups. Plasma renin activity and net sodium and potassium balances were similar among the three groups. Plasma total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and HDL cholesterol were significantly lower (P < 0.05) in the group fed the fish oil diet than in the group fed the control diet. Total, LDL and HDL cholesterol did not differ between rats fed the pectin and rats fed the control diet. Plasma triglyceride concentration did not differ among the three groups. Thus, dietary fish oil attenuated the development of DOCA-salt hypertension, unrelated to alterations of net sodium balance. Fish oil feeding also lowered total, LDL and HDL cholesterol, but did not alter the HDL/LDL ratio. In contrast, dietary pectin exerted no effect on blood pressure or lipid metabolism.

KEY WORDS: • fish oil • pectin • blood pressure • lipids • hypertension • DOCA-salt hypertensive rat

Manuscript received 28 March 1988. Revision accepted 2 March 1989.