Short-term intake of conjugated linoleic acid inhibits lipoprotein lipase and glucose metabolism but does not enhance lipolysis in mouse adipose tissue.

Feeding diets supplemented with t10c12 conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) to growing mice reduces body fat mass. The effects are evident after 1 wk and maximal by 3 wk and are accompanied by reductions in fat cell size. This may complicate direct comparisons with adipocytes from control mice. Accordingly, we investigated the early biochemical events that occur within adipocytes during the first week of CLA feeding, before changes in the size of adipocytes have occurred. Female ICR mice were fed a control diet or a diet supplemented with 0.5 g/100 g of CLA for 4 d, at which time there were no differences in body weight, fat mass or adipocyte size (except that CLA-fed mice had fewer adipocytes >90 micro m in diameter). Parametrial adipose tissue from the CLA-fed mice had significantly reduced heparin-releasable lipoprotein lipase (LPL) and intracellular LPL activities and significantly reduced glucose incorporation into CO(2), fatty acid and glycerol. There were no differences between adipose tissues from CLA-fed or control mice in the ratios of 16:0 to 16:1 and 18:0 to 18:1 fatty acids or in norepinephrine-stimulated lipolysis. Serum insulin levels in food-deprived mice, measured at 4 d and 7 wk, did not differ between groups nor did the concentration of free fatty acids in serum of food-deprived or fed mice measured at the same time points. In mice, CLA-induced inhibition of heparin-releasable LPL and glucose metabolism may be the most important early steps leading to subsequent body fat reduction. In addition, CLA does not appear to enhance lipolysis in mouse adipose tissue in vivo.