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Department of Nutrition, College of Human Ecology and Agricultural Experiment Station, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996-1900
Diets containing either triacetin (the water-soluble triglyceride of acetate) or long-chain triglycerides (LCT) were fed to rats for 30 d to determine the effect on body weight gain and adipose tissue cellularity. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were allowed free access to one of three diets: a control diet containing 5% of energy as fat or one of two experimental diets that contained 30% triglyceride (by energy). The source of the triglyceride in the two experimental groups was either 100% LCT or 95% triacetin + 5% LCT. Within the experimental groups receiving 30% fat, the source of dietary triglyceride (LCT vs. triacetin) did not affect total energy consumption. There were no significant differences in body weight at the onset of the study; however, animals fed 100% LCT weighed significantly more than the other two groups at the end of the study. In all three fat pads studied, animals fed triacetin had significantly lower pad mass than did animals fed LCT. Mean fat cell size was smaller in fat depots of animals fed short-chain triglyceride. Provision of dietary energy as the short-chain triglyceride triacetin in lieu of LCT resulted in lower weight gain and fat deposition. These data demonstrate the impact of dietary triglyceride composition on body weight regulation.
KEY WORDS: short-chain triglyceride fatty acid adipocyte triacetin rats
1 Supported by project TN 010 of the Agricultural Experiment Station, University of Tennessee.
2 The costs of publication of this article were defrayed in part by the payment of page charges. This article must therefore be hereby marked "advertisement" in accordance with 18 USC section 1734 solely to indicate this fact.
3 To whom correspondence and reprint requests should be addressed.
Manuscript received 26 May 1994. Revision accepted 24 October 1994.