Safety evaluation of a medium- and long-chain triacylglycerol oil produced from medium-chain triacylglycerols and edible vegetable oil.

To reduce the incorporation of dietary lipids into adipose tissue, modified fats and oils have been developed, such as medium-chain triacylglycerols (MCT). Typical dietary lipids from vegetable oils, termed long-chain triacylglycerols (LCT), are degraded by salivary, intestinal and pancreatic lipases into two fatty acids and a monoacyl glycerol; whereas, MCT are degraded by the same enzymes into three fatty acids and the simple glycerol backbone. Medium-chain fatty acids (MCFA) are readily absorbed from the small intestine directly into the bloodstream and transported to the liver for hepatic metabolism, while long-chain fatty acids (LCFA) are incorporated into chylomicrons and enter the lymphatic system. MCFA are readily broken down to carbon dioxide and two-carbon fragments, while LCFA are re-esterified to triacylglycerols and either metabolized for energy or stored in adipose tissue. Therefore, consumption of MCT decreases the incorporation of fatty acids into adipose tissue. However, MCT have technological disadvantages precluding their use in many food applications. A possible resolution is the manufacture and use of a triacylglycerol containing both LCT and MCT, termed medium- and long-chain triacylglycerol (MLCT). This manuscript describes studies performed for the safety evaluation of a MLCT oil enzymatically produced from MCT and edible vegetable oil (containing LCT), by a transesterification process. The approximate fatty acid composition of this MLCT consists of caprylic acid (9.7%), capric acid (3.3%), palmitic acid (3.8%), stearic acid (1.7%), oleic acid (51.2%), linoleic acid (18.4%), linolenic acid (9.0%), and other fatty acids (2.9%). The approximate percentages of long (L) and medium (M) fatty acids in the triacylglyerols are as follows: L, L, L (55.1%), L, L, M (35.2%), L, M, M (9.1%), and M, M, M (0.6%). The studies included: (1) acute study in rats (LD50>5000 mg/kg); (2) 6 week repeat-dose safety study via dietary administration to rats (NOAEL of 3500 mg/kg/day), (3) in vitro genotoxicity studies using Salmonella typhimurium and Escherichia coli (negative at 5000 mg/plate), and (4) a four-week, placebo-controlled, double blind, human clinical trial utilizing 20 test subjects (no effects at 42 g MLCT/day). These data are corroborated by other studies published in the peer-reviewed literature on analogous MLCTs.