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Effects of supplementation with unsaturated fatty acids on plasma and membrane lipid composition and platelet function in patients with cirrhosis and defective aggregation
- Source :
- Journal of Hepatology. 28:654-661
- Publication Year :
- 1998
- Publisher :
- Elsevier BV, 1998.
-
Abstract
- Background/Aims: Defective platelet aggregation and reduced platelet production of thromboxane A 2 , a metabolite of arachidonic acid, are common findings in patients with cirrhosis. We evaluated the effects of dietary supplementation with two combinations of unsaturated fatty acids on platelet function and plasma and membrane fatty acids in patients with liver cirrhosis. Methods: In a double-blind study, 15 patients with cirrhosis and defective aggregation were randomized to receive a 6-week supplementation with gamma-linolenic and linoleic acid (1 g/day of each fatty acid) or with oleic acid and linoleic acid (groups GLA and OA, respectively). Results: Under baseline conditions, patients showed elevated concentrations of monounsaturated fatty acids and a reduction in polyunsaturated fatty acids. The product/precursor ratios for Δ6 and Δ5 desaturases, two key enzymes in the pathway leading to arachidonic acid, were significantly reduced in the group of patients. In the GLA group, a significant increase in the levels of dihomo-gamma-linoleic acid (20:3ω6) was observed in plasma and membranes, together with a parallel decrease in the 20:420:3ω6 ratio after supplementation. No significant changes were observed in the OA group. The levels of arachidonic acid did not change significantly in either group of patients. Platelet aggregation to collagen was unchanged in the GLA group, but significantly improved in the OA group. Conclusions: These results show that supplementation with precursors of arachidonic acid is ineffective in elevating plasma or membrane arachidonate levels and does not improve platelet aggregation, suggesting that synthesis of arachidonic acid through the Δ5 desaturase cannot be correspondingly activated or that incorporation/retention of the produced fatty acid into lipids is impaired. The increased platelet aggregation in the OA group is likely to be explained by the effect of oleic acid contained in the diet, the effects of which may have been counteracted by the elevation in 20:3ω6, a source of anti-aggregatory prostanoids, in the GLA group.
- Subjects :
- Blood Platelets
Liver Cirrhosis
Male
medicine.medical_specialty
Platelet Aggregation
Thromboxane
Linoleic acid
Biology
Linoleic Acid
Membrane Lipids
Thromboxane A2
chemistry.chemical_compound
Double-Blind Method
Reference Values
Internal medicine
medicine
Humans
Vitamin E
gamma-Linolenic Acid
gamma-Linolenic acid
Unsaturated fatty acid
Aged
chemistry.chemical_classification
Hepatology
Fatty acid
Middle Aged
Lipids
Oleic acid
Endocrinology
chemistry
Dietary Supplements
Fatty Acids, Unsaturated
Female
Arachidonic acid
Oleic Acid
Polyunsaturated fatty acid
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 01688278
- Volume :
- 28
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Journal of Hepatology
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....477afba1dc4d38dc8a1d325bf379d3df