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Comparison of the effects of fish oil and olive oil on blood lipids and aortic atherosclerosis in Watanabe heritable hyperlipidaemic rabbits

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 March 2007

Alicja Mortensen ,
Birgit Fischer Hansen ,
Jørgen Fischer Hansen ,
Henrik Frandsen ,
Elzbieta Bartnikowska ,
Peder S. Andersen  and
Lone S. Bertelsen
Alicja Mortensen*
Affiliation:
Danish Veterinary and Food Administration, Institute of Food Safety and Toxicology, Mørkhøj Bygade 19, DK-2860 Søborg, Denmark
Birgit Fischer Hansen
Affiliation:
Department of Pathology, Hvidovre Hospital, Kettegårdsvej 30, DK-2650 Hvidovre, Denmark
Jørgen Fischer Hansen
Affiliation:
Department of Cardiology, Bispebjerg Hospital, Bispebjerg Bakke 23, DK-2400 København N, Denmark
Henrik Frandsen
Affiliation:
Danish Veterinary and Food Administration, Institute of Food Safety and Toxicology, Mørkhøj Bygade 19, DK-2860 Søborg, Denmark
Elzbieta Bartnikowska
Affiliation:
Department of Human Nutrition, Warsaw Agriculture University, Nowoursynowska 166, Warsaw, Poland
Peder S. Andersen
Affiliation:
Department of Biochemistry and Nutrition, Technical University of Denmark, DK-2800 Lyngby, Denmark
Lone S. Bertelsen
Affiliation:
Department of Biochemistry and Nutrition, Technical University of Denmark, DK-2800 Lyngby, Denmark
*
*Dr Alicja Mortensen, fax +45 33 95 66 96, email alm@vfd.dk
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Abstract

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To compare the effects of fish oil and olive oil on the development of atherosclerosis in Watanabe heritable hyperlipidaemic (WHHL) rabbits, 6-week-old animals were given a daily dose (1·5 ml/kg body weight) of fish oil (n 10) or olive oil (n 10) by oral administration for 16 weeks. Plasma cholesterol and triacylglycerols were measured once monthly, and their concentrations in lipoproteins, together with susceptibility of LDL to oxidation were measured in vitro at the termination of the experiment. Aortic atherosclerosis was quantified biochemically and microscopically. After 4 weeks of treatment, and throughout the study thereafter, blood lipids were significantly (P < 0·05) lower in the fish-oil group than in the olive-oil group (cholesterol: 17·0 v. 30·3 mmol/l, triacylglycerols 2·97 v. 6·25 mmol/l, at termination). In the fish-oil group cholesterol was significantly lower in intermediate-density lipoproteins (2·69 v. 6·76 mmol/l) and VLDL (3·36 v. 11·51 mmol/l). Triacylglycerol levels of intermediate-density lipoproteins and VLDL in the fish-oil group were also significantly lower when compared with the olive-oil group (0·54 v 1·36 mmol/l and 0·92 v. 2·87 mmol/l respectively). No group differences were recorded for LDL- and HDL-cholesterol or triacylglycerol levels. A significantly higher oxidation of LDL was recorded 1 h after exposure to CuSO4 in the fish-oil group when compared with the olive-oil group (0·465 v. 0·202, arbitrary units). The following indicators of atherosclerosis development were significantly lower in the fish-oil group than in the olive-oil group: the cholesterol content (mg/g tissue) in the ascending aorta (29·8 v.48·9), the intima:media value (4·81 v. 18·24) and the area of intima (0·10 v. 0·57 mm2) in the thoracic aorta. It was concluded that fish-oil treatment decreased blood lipids and the development of aortic atherosclerosis in WHHL rabbits when compared with olive-oil treatment.

Keywords

WHHL rabbitFish oilOlive oilAtherosclerosis
Type
Research Article
Information
British Journal of Nutrition , Volume 80 , Issue 6 , December 1998 , pp. 565 - 573
Copyright
Copyright © The Nutrition Society 1998

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