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Human Nutrition and Metabolism

The Source of Long-Chain PUFA in Formula Supplements Does Not Affect the Fatty Acid Composition of Plasma Lipids in Full-Term Infants¹

Aleix Sala-Vila, Ana I. Castellote, Cristina Campoy^*, Montserrat Rivero, María Rodriguez-Palmero and M. Carmen López-Sabater²

Department Nutrició i Bromatologia, Centre de Referència en Tecnologia dels Aliments (CeRTA), Facultat de Farmàcia, Universitat de Barcelona, 08028 Barcelona, Spain; ^* Department Neonatology, Hospital Universitario de Granada, Granada, Spain; and Scientific Department, ORDESA Lab. SL, Barcelona, Spain

²To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: mclopez{at}ub.edu.

Supplementation of formulas for full-term infants with long-chain (LC) PUFA [arachidonic acid (AA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)] at levels resembling human milk is recommended because they provide biochemical and functional benefits to the neonate. The objective of this work was to determine whether the source of dietary LC-PUFA affects the bioavailability in full-term infants. Treatment groups were as follows: full-term infants were fed from birth to 3 mo breast-milk (n = 11, 0.4 and 0.3 g/100 g total fatty acids as AA and DHA, respectively), formula containing LC-PUFA in the form of egg phospholipids (n = 12), or a formula supplemented with LC-PUFA in the form of triglycerides synthesized by single cells of algal and fungal microorganisms (n = 12). Both formulas provided 0.4 and 0.1 g/100 g total fatty acids as AA and DHA, respectively. We compared the fatty acid compositions of the main plasma lipid fractions (phospholipids, triglycerides, and cholesteryl esters) at birth and 3 mo. At 3 mo, lower levels of nervonic acid (NA), docosapentaenoic (DPA) acid, and DHA were found in all plasma lipid fractions from infants fed formula compared with those in the human milk–fed infants, irrespective of the source of the formula supplement (P < 0.02). These data demonstrate that the form of dietary LC-PUFA (triglycerides or phospholipids) does not influence their bioavailability. Similarly, absorption of LC-PUFA depends mainly on the lipid composition of the diet fed. These results suggest that the levels of NA, DPA, and DHA in formulas for full-term infants should be increased.

KEY WORDS: • human milk • infant formula • LC-PUFA • phospholipids • plasma

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