Bioavailability of marine n-3 fatty acid formulations☆
Received 3 March 2010; received in revised form 28 June 2010; accepted 29 June 2010. published online 21 July 2010. Corrected Proof
Abstract
The use of marine n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFA) as supplements has prompted the development of concentrated formulations to overcome compliance problems. The present study compares three concentrated preparations — ethyl esters, free fatty acids and re-esterified triglycerides — with placebo oil in a double-blinded design, and with fish body oil and cod liver oil in single-blinded arms. Seventy-two volunteers were given approximately 3.3g of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) plus docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) daily for 2 weeks. Increases in absolute amounts of EPA and DHA in fasting serum triglycerides, cholesterol esters and phospholipids were examined. Bioavailability of EPA+DHA from re-esterified triglycerides was superior (124%) compared with natural fish oil, whereas the bioavailability from ethyl esters was inferior (73%). Free fatty acid bioavailability (91%) did not differ significantly from natural triglycerides. The stereochemistry of fatty acid in acylglycerols did not influence the bioavailability of EPA and DHA.
aDepartment of Human Nutrition, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
bDepartment of Clinical Biochemistry, Center for Cardiovascular Research Aalborg Hospital, Aalborg, Denmark
cDepartment of Gastroenterology, Aalborg Hospital, Aalborg, Denmark
dDepartment of Cardiology, Center for Cardiovascular Research Aalborg Hospital, Aalborg, Denmark
Correspondence to: Lille Fredensvej 6A, DK 2920, Charlottenlund, Denmark. Tel.: +4539636688; fax: +4539636689.
☆ The main results have been previously published in the proceedings of a workshop at the 29th yearly meeting of The European Society for Clinical Investigation: n-3 Fatty acids: prevention and treatment in vascular disease. S.D. Kristensen, E.B. Schmidt, R. de Caterina, S. Endres (Eds). Springer Verlag, London, 1995
ABSTRACT
g of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) plus docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) daily for 2 weeks. Increases in absolute amounts of EPA and DHA in fasting serum triglycerides, cholesterol esters and phospholipids were examined. Bioavailability of EPA+DHA from re-esterified triglycerides was superior (124%) compared with natural fish oil, whereas the bioavailability from ethyl esters was inferior (73%). Free fatty acid bioavailability (91%) did not differ significantly from natural triglycerides. The stereochemistry of fatty acid in acylglycerols did not influence the bioavailability of EPA and DHA.