Effects of fish-oil supplementation on myocardial fatty acids in humans

Abstract

Copyright © 2007 by The American Society for NutritionBackgroundIncreased fish or fish-oil consumption is associated with reduced risk of cardiac mortality, especially sudden death. This benefit putatively arises from the incorporation of the long-chain n-3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) into cardiomyocyte phospholipids.ObjectiveThe study examined the kinetics of incorporation of n-3 fatty acids into human myocardial membrane phospholipids during supplementation with fish oil and alpha-linolenic acid-rich flaxseed oil.DesignPatients with low self-reported fish intake (ResultsSurgery rescheduling resulted in a range of treatment times from 7 to 118 d. In the fish-oil-treated subjects, accumulation of EPA and DHA in the right atrium was curvilinear with time and reached a maximum at approximately 30 d of treatment and displaced mainly arachidonic acid. Flaxseed oil supplementation yielded a small increase in atrial EPA but not DHA, whereas olive oil did not significantly change atrial n-3 fatty acids.ConclusionThe results of the present study show that dietary n-3 fatty acids are rapidly incorporated into human myocardial phospholipids at the expense of arachidonic acid during high-dose fish-oil supplementation.Robert G Metcalf, Michael J James, Robert A Gibson, James RM Edwards, John Stubberfield, Robert Stuklis, Kurt Roberts-Thomson, Glenn D Young and Leslie G Clelan