Metabolic effects of coconut, safflower, or menhaden oil feeding in lean and obese Zucker rats.

The aim of the present investigation was to study the effects of fish oil feeding in obese Zucker rats to establish its suitability as an animal model of hyperlipidaemia, and to understand the possible mechanism of fish oil-induced perturbations in cell metabolism. Lean and obese Zucker rats were fed on diets containing 180 g coconut, safflower, or menhaden oil/kg for 10 weeks. Body-weights and food intakes of lean coconut (LC), safflower (LS), and menhaden (LM) groups were similar. Obese menhaden (OM) rats had lower food intakes and body-weights compared with obese coconut (OC) and obese safflower (OS) groups, but values for all obese rats were higher than those for lean rats. Liver weights were higher in obese compared with lean rats, but on a percentage body-weight basis menhaden oil rats had higher values within genotype. Serum cholesterol and triacylglycerol levels were lower in the OM group compared with the OC and OS groups, and in the LM group compared with the LC group. Glucose and insulin levels were highest in OS rats followed by OC and OM rats and then the lean rats. Serum triiodothyronine and thyroxine were lower in OM rats compared with OC and OS rats. Liver mitochondrial state 3 rates with glutamate-malate and succinate were lower; mitochondrial beta-oxidation was unaffected and peroxisomal beta-oxidation was higher in menhaden oil rats compared with both coconut and safflower oil rats. In general, consumption of menhaden oil lowered hepatic malic enzyme (EC 1.1.1.38, 1.1.1.40), glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.1.49) and glutathione peroxidase (EC 1.11.1.9) activities and elevated long-chain fatty acyl-CoA hydrolase (EC 3.1.2.2) activity when compared with the two other diets. It is concluded that obese Zucker rats do respond like human subjects to fish oil feeding but not to vegetable oils. The hypolipidaemic effect of fish oil appears to be mediated through a lowering of lipogenic enzymes, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and malic enzyme.