Metabolic fate of chylomicrons obtained from rats maintained on diets varying in fatty acid composition.

The importance of the fatty acid component in the metabolism of chylomicrons was demonstrated by feeding diets varying in fatty acid composition which resulted in chylomicrons of different sizes. On a diet rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) from safflower oil, chylomicrons of diameter 1853 +/- 192 A were harvested from the mesenteric lymph, whereas on coconut oil and medium-chain triglyceride diets the chylomicron size was 1403 +/- 83 and 604 +/- 40 A, respectively. When the isolated chylomicrons were injected into recipient rats maintained on a regular diet, their half-life (t1/2) decreased from 5.4 +/- 0.4 to 1.8 +/- 0.3 min with the increase in particle size. No significant difference in the apolipoprotein profile of chylomicrons of various sizes was noted, indicating that alterations of chylomicron removal are not related to apolipoprotein composition. Rats maintained on PUFA diets showed a marked increase in their adipose tissue lipoprotein lipase activity. The fast removal of large chylomicrons and increased tissue lipoprotein lipase activity, together with suppression of hepatic lipogenesis on this diet, apparently explains the low plasma triglyceride level in rats maintained on diets rich in PUFAs.