Dietary Fat and the Structure and Properties of Rat Erythrocytes

Abstract

The lipid composition of rat erythrocyte stroma was studied when corn oil and lard were fed with or without vitamin E supplements. Substitution of lard for corn oil did not influence the relative concentrations of the neutral lipid, or choline- and noncholine-containing phospholipids of the stroma lipids. Gas-liquid chromatography indicated that the noncholine-containing phospholipids were rich in arachidonic acid. Hexadecanal, octadecanal and octadecenal also occurred, presumably in the form of phosphatide plasmalogens. The choline-containing lipids contained more saturated fatty acids, primarily palmitic acid. More linoleic acid occurred in this fraction than in the noncholine phospholipids, whereas the longer-chain-length polyenoic acids were less abundant. Aldehydes were present in lower concentrations, indicating that a smaller fraction of choline phosphatides occurred as plasmalogens. The corn oil diet, rich in linoleic acid, resulted in the occurrence of higher concentrations of this acid and of docosaenoic acids, whereas oleic acid was present in higher concentrations in the phospholipid fatty acids when lard was used as the dietary fat. Arachidonic acid was independent of this dietary variation as were the aldehydes. Vitamin E deficiency appeared to exert no influence on the fatty acid composition of the phospholipids.