gamma-linolenic-acid and Hyperlipidemias

Changes in diet over the past century have markedly altered the consumption of fatty acids. The dramatic increase in the ingestion of saturated and n-6 fatty acids and concomitant decrease in n-3 fatty acids are thought to be a major driver of the increase in the incidence of inflammatory diseases such as asthma, allergy, and atherosclerosis. The central objective of the Center for Botanical Lipids at Wake Forest University School of Medicine and the Brigham and Women's Hospital is to delineate the mechanisms by which fatty acid-based dietary supplements inhibit inflammation leading to chronic human diseases such as cardiovascular disease and asthma. The key question that this center addresses is whether botanical n-6 and n-3 fatty acids directly block recognized biochemical pathways or the expression of critical genes that lead to asthma and atherosclerosis. Dietary supplementation with flaxseed oil, borage oil, and echium oil affects the biochemistry of fatty acid metabolism and thus the balance of proinflammatory mediators and atherogenic lipids. Supplementation studies have begun to identify key molecular and genetic mechanisms that regulate the production of lipid mediators involved in inflammatory and hyperlipidemic diseases. Echium oil and other oils containing stearidonic acid as well as botanical oil combinations (such as echium and borage oils) hold great promise for modulating inflammatory diseases.

Topics: Animals; Asthma; Atherosclerosis; Cholesterol; Chronic Disease; Dietary Fats; Dietary Fats, Unsaturated; Dietary Supplements; Echium; Fatty Acids, Omega-3; Fatty Acids, Omega-6; gamma-Linolenic Acid; Humans; Hyperlipidemias; Inflammation; Linseed Oil; Plant Oils; Signal Transduction; Triglycerides

Blackcurrant oil soft capsule (BOSC) is an effective and safe herbal medicine for the treatment of hyperlipidemia and has been approved for the market in China. No studies have been performed, however, to confirm whether BOSC is effective in reducing the serum lipid level in a large-scale ordinary or special patient population. In this study, we conducted an observational study at five investigative sites that was designed to further investigate the efficacy of BOSC on serum lipid level lowering in a large-scale target patient population and include a relative factors analysis for the serum lipid decrease. Serum total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TGs) and high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) were measured before and after drug administration. TC and TGs were detected by enzymatic analysis, while HDL-C was detected by PTA-Mg(2+) precipitation. A total of 2,154 dyslipidemic patients were recruited and took BOSC 1.8 g b.i.d. every day for 6 weeks. In terms of serum lipid lowering, the overall curative rate was 37.19%, the marked effective rate was 52.28% and the effective rate was 79.06%. The corresponding effective rate of TC, TGs and HDL-C was 80.98%, 78.28% and 67.07%, respectively. Multivariate analyses with adjustment for centers, gender and age indicated that BOSC was almost ineffective in patients with a disease course <36 months (OR: 0.467, 95% CI: 0.359-0.607) and was effective in mild hyperlipidemia (OR: 3.176, 2.535-3.978) and in subjects with lower BMIs (BMI <24: 3.472, 2.171-5.552; BMI between 24 and 28: 2.310, 1.832-2.911 compared with BMI >or= 28). No serious adverse events were reported during the study period. Therefore, we conclude that BOSC is effective in decreasing TC and TG levels and in increasing the serum HDL-C level, especially in mildly hyperlipidemic patients and those with a lower BMI. Moreover, because it is a natural raw material, BOSC may be safer and more effective in the treatment of hyperlipidemia.

Topics: Aged; Body Mass Index; Cholesterol, HDL; Drugs, Chinese Herbal; Female; gamma-Linolenic Acid; Humans; Hyperlipidemias; Male; Middle Aged; Multivariate Analysis; Plant Oils; Triglycerides

In nephrotic syndrome, large amounts of plasma proteins are lost in urine, causing a decrease in the plasma oncotic pressure. This leads to enhanced hepatic synthesis of albumin and other proteins, including lipoproteins, causing a secondary hyperlipidemia. Essential fatty acids such as gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) can prevent accumulation of cholesterol in the body, and spirulina has an appreciable amount of GLA. In this study 23 patients (age 2 to 13 years) with nephrotic syndrome received either medication (group I) or medication plus 1 g/day Spirulina (group II). Height, weight, and serum levels of fasting blood sugar, triglycerides, total cholesterol (TC), and low- and high-density cholesterol fractions (LDL-C and HDL-C, respectively) were measured before and after the 2-month study period. Mean height and weight were normal compared with healthy, age-matched Indian children. Lipoprotein cholesterol levels were significantly increased at baseline. TC significantly decreased by 116.33 mg/dl, LDL-C by 94.14 mg/dl, and triglycerides by 67.72 mg/dl in group II; in control group I, these values fell by 69.87, 61.13, and 22.62 mg/dl, respectively. The LDL-C:HDL-C ratio also decreased significantly, by 1.66 in group II and 1.13 in group I. TC:HDL-C decreased by 1.96 in group II and 1.19 in group I. HDL-C:LDL-C also improved significantly in both the groups. It can be concluded that spray-dried Spirulina capsules, rich in antioxidants, GLA, amino acids, and fatty acids, helped reduce the increased levels of lipids in patients with hyperlipidemic nephrotic syndrome.

Topics: Adolescent; Anticholesteremic Agents; Bacterial Proteins; Body Height; Body Weight; Child; Child, Preschool; Cholesterol; Cholesterol, HDL; Cholesterol, LDL; Female; gamma-Linolenic Acid; Humans; Hyperlipidemias; Male; Nephrotic Syndrome; Spirulina; Triglycerides

Interrelated effects of γ-linolenic acid (GLA) and sesamin, a sesame lignan, on hepatic fatty acid synthesis and oxidation were examined. Rats were fed experimental diets supplemented with 0 or 2 g/kg sesamin (1:1 mixture of sesamin and episesamin) and containing 100 g/kg of palm oil (saturated fat), safflower oil rich in linoleic acid, or oil of evening primrose origin containing 43% GLA (GLA oil) for 18 days. In rats fed sesamin-free diets, GLA oil, compared with other oils, increased the activity and mRNA levels of various enzymes involved in fatty acid oxidation, except for some instances. Sesamin greatly increased these parameters, and the enhancing effects of sesamin on peroxisomal fatty acid oxidation rate and acyl-CoA oxidase, enoyl-CoA hydratase and acyl-CoA thioesterase activities were more exaggerated in rats fed GLA oil than in the animals fed other oils. The combination of sesamin and GLA oil also synergistically increased the mRNA levels of some peroxisomal fatty acid oxidation enzymes and of several enzymes involved in fatty acid metabolism located in other cell organelles. In the groups fed sesamin-free diets, GLA oil, compared with other oils, markedly reduced the activity and mRNA levels of various lipogenic enzymes. Sesamin reduced all these parameters, except for malic enzyme, in rats fed palm and safflower oils, but the effects were attenuated in the animals fed GLA oil. These changes by sesamin and fat type accompanied profound alterations in serum lipid levels. This may be ascribable to the changes in apolipoprotein-B-containing lipoproteins.

Topics: Acyl-CoA Oxidase; Animals; Dietary Fats, Unsaturated; Dietary Sucrose; Dietary Supplements; Dioxoles; Enoyl-CoA Hydratase; Fatty Acids; gamma-Linolenic Acid; Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic; Hyperlipidemias; Hypolipidemic Agents; Lignans; Linoleic Acids; Lipids; Liver; Male; Oenothera biennis; Oxidation-Reduction; Palm Oil; Peroxisomes; Plant Oils; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Safflower Oil; Thiolester Hydrolases

Cornus wilsoniana Wanger is a woody oil plant distributed in the south region of the Yellow River, China. Its oil has been taken as edible oil for over 100 y, and consumption of such oil is believed to prevent hyperlipidemia in Chinese folk recipe. This study has investigated the hypolipidemic effect of Cornus wilsoniana oil (CWO) in Sprague-Dawley rats. The results demonstrated that CWO could significantly decrease total cholesterol (TC), total triacylglycerol (TG), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) in serum, liver weight, hepatic TC, and TG. After analyzing the chemical constituents of CWO, we found that the content of unsaturated fatty acids (UFA) was very high (69.12%). Specially, the n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), including linoleic acid, γ-linolenic acid, and 11,14-eicosadienoic acid, accounted very great proportion (38.86%). The high hypolipidemic activity of CWO might be attributed to the lipid-lowering functions of these polyunsaturated fatty acids. Molecular docking was further performed to study the binding model of fatty acids (FA) from CWO to a possible hypolipidemic target, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor δ (PPARδ). The results showed that linoleic acid and γ-linolenic acid could bind PPARδ very well.. Cornus wilsoniana oil could be used as equilibrated dietary oil, not only having hypolipidemic function, but also helping to overcome essential fatty acids deficiency.

Topics: Animals; China; Cholesterol, LDL; Cornus; Dietary Fats, Unsaturated; Eicosanoic Acids; Fruit; gamma-Linolenic Acid; Hyperlipidemias; Hypolipidemic Agents; Linoleic Acid; Liver; Male; Plant Oils; PPAR delta; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Triglycerides

The dietary intake of saturated fatty acids affects arteriosclerosis. We studied the effect of supplementation (15% wt/wt) of a hyperlipemic diet (1.33% cholesterol) with evening primrose oil (EPO) (Oenothera biennis) for 6 weeks in four groups of 10 rabbits each. At the end of this period we determined lipid peroxidation, glutathione content, and glutathione peroxidase, reductase and transferase activities in liver, brain, heart, aorta and platelets. The atherogenic diet increased tissue lipid peroxidation and decreased the protective antioxidant effect of glutathione. Dietary supplementation with EPO reduced tissue lipid peroxidation (61% in liver, 57% in brain, 42% in heart, 24% in aorta, 33% in platelets). Total glutathione was increased, especially in the aorta (90%) and platelets (200%); however, in all tissues the percentage of oxidised glutathione decreased. Evening primrose oil reduced glutathione peroxidase activity and increased the activities of glutathione reductase and transferase. We conclude that in rabbits made hyperlipemic with a diet rich in saturated fatty acids, EPO decreased tissue oxidative stress.

Topics: Animals; Antioxidants; Diet, Atherogenic; Dietary Fats, Unsaturated; Fatty Acids, Essential; gamma-Linolenic Acid; Glutathione; Hyperlipidemias; Hypolipidemic Agents; Linoleic Acids; Lipid Peroxidation; Male; Oenothera biennis; Plant Oils; Rabbits

The dietary intake of saturated fatty acids affects arteriosclerosis. We studied the effect of supplementation (15% wt/wt) of a hyperlipemic diet (1.3% cholesterol) with evening primrose oil (Oenothera biennis) in four groups of 10 rabbits each. After 6 weeks the aortic endothelium was analyzed morphologically with scanning electron microscopy, and the arterial wall was studied with morphometric techniques and cell nucleus counts. Endothelial functioning was analyzed by measuring prostacyclin synthesis, and thrombogenicity of the subendothelium was studied by perfusion in a Baumgartner annular chamber. Evening primrose oil reduced hypercholesterolemia (from 29 +/- 3 to 12 +/- 2 nmol/l), increased HDL-cholesterol (from 0.5 +/- 0.06 to 0.8 +/- 0.09 nmol/l) and doubled prostacyclin synthesis (from 2.7 +/- 2 to 6.2 +/- 0.7 ng/mg aorta) in rabbits on the hyperlipemic diet, reduced subendothelial surface occupied by platelets (from 6.9 +/- 0.4 to 4.8 +/- 0.3%), and reduced human platelet adhesion on the subendothelium (from 53.3 +/- 6% to 38 +/- 8%, respect to total occupation). Morphological analyses showed that evening primrose oil diminished endothelial lesions caused by the atherogenic diet, reducing area of the arterial wall (from 6.9 +/- 0.2 to 4.7 +/- 0.2 microm2 x 10(6)) and the degree of neointimal proliferation (from 0.6 +/- 0.02 to 0.4 +/- 0.09 microm2 x 10(6)). We conclude that in our experimental model, this dietary supplement enhanced the antithrombotic capacity of the endothelium, reduced subendothelial thrombogenicity, and diminished the extent of vascular wall lesions caused by the hyperlipemic diet.

Topics: Animals; Diet, Atherogenic; Dietary Supplements; Fatty Acids, Essential; Fibrinolytic Agents; gamma-Linolenic Acid; Humans; Hyperlipidemias; Hypolipidemic Agents; Linoleic Acids; Oenothera biennis; Plant Oils; Rabbits; Thrombosis

Primrose oil (about 72% of fatty acids 18:2 omega 6 and 9% of 18:3 omega 6) was supplemented in addition to the used diet of 20 hyperlipidemic patients for 3 months in an open study. The dose of primrose oil was 2.4 ml, 4.8 ml and 7.2 ml during the first, second and third month, respectively. Primrose oil increased the proportion of gamma-linolenic acid in serum cholesteryl esters (1.81 vs. 2.13%, p less than 0.05), phospholipids (0.65 vs. 0.82%, p less than 0.01), triglycerides (0.70 vs. 0.99%, p less than 0.01) and free fatty acids (0.80 vs. 0.91%, NS). It did not, however, change serum cholesterol, HDL cholesterol or triglyceride mean values. Blood pressure mean values remained unchanged during the follow-up as well.

Topics: Adult; Aged; Blood Pressure; Cholesterol; Cholesterol, HDL; Fatty Acids, Essential; Fatty Acids, Unsaturated; Female; gamma-Linolenic Acid; Humans; Hyperlipidemias; Hypolipidemic Agents; Linoleic Acids; Linolenic Acids; Lipids; Male; Middle Aged; Oenothera biennis; Plant Oils; Triglycerides