Reduction in medium chain acids and monoenoic acids in livers and plasma of rats fed eicosa-5,8,11, 14-tetraynoic acid.

Male Sprague-Dawley rats were fed for 8 weeks a corn oil (CO) diet or a hydrogenated coconut oil (HCNO) diet. These diets were fed in the absence or presence of eicosa-5,8,11,14-tetraynoic acid (TYA). The inclusion of TYA in the HCNO diet reduced the levels of 12:0 and 14:0 in the total fatty acids of livers and plasma. With either diet, the presence of TYA caused an alteration in the fatty acid composition of these tissues so as to reduce the values of the ratios: 16:1/16:0, 18:1/18:0. and 20:4/18:2. These results suggest that dietary TYA can influence the hepatic metabolism of medium chain fatty acids and that it may inhibit the desaturase enzyme involved in the synthesis of not only 20:4 but also of monoenoic fatty acids.