The effect of ‘essential fatty acid’ deficiency on the fatty acid composition of the total lipid of the intestine

Abstract

The quantity and composition of the fatty acids of the total lipid of the rat intestinal muscle and mucosa were determined at different sites in the intestinal tract in rats in 4 nutritional states normal diet of rat cubes; normal diet of rat cubes followed by starvation for 24 hours; "essential fatty acid"-deficiency; fat-free diet supplemented by linseed oil. The arachidonic acid and docosahexaenoic acid concentrations were 50% higher in mucosa than in muscle. Compared with the supplemented animals the "essential fatty acid"-deficient rats contained 1% of linoleic acid, 10% of arachidonic acid, 8% of docosapentaenoic acid and 20% of docosahexaenoic acid. They also contained eicosadienoic acid and docosatetraenoic acid, which were not detected in starved or fed rats. Both "essential fatty acid"-deficient and supplemented rats had 50% more palmitoleic acid than rats on a normal diet of rat cubes. Essential fatty acids were lost more readily from the colon in deficient animals and replaced to a lesser extent in the supplemented animals. The "essential fatty acid"-deficientand supplemented animals have 35% less fat in the intestine than the normal and starved rats. Long-chain aldehydes were also estimated and found to be concentrated in the colon muscle.