Table 2

Erythrocyte fatty acid profile in 20 healthy men following 21 days on a high saturated or a high unsaturated fat diet


High SFA (% peak area)
High USFA (% peak area)

SFA profile


     C10:0 Capric acid
nd
nd
     C12:0 Lauric acid
0.36 ± 0.22
0.39 ± 0.23
     C14:0 Myristic acid
0.54 ± 0.07
0.49 ± 0.05***
     C15:0 Pentadecanoic acid
0.20 ± 0.15
0.17 ± 0.14
     C16:0 Palmitic acid
26.27 ± 0.97
25.26 ± 0.89***
     C17:0 Heptadecanoic acid
0.48 ± 0.12
0.50 ± 0.12
     C18:0 Stearic acid
9.67 ± 0.91
10.31 ± 0.95**
     Total SFA
37.5
37.1
MUFA profile


     C16:1n-7 Palmitoleic acid
nd
nd
     C18:1n-9 Oleic acid
10.25 ± 0.82
10.70 ± 0.88**
     Total MUFA
10.3
10.7
PUFA profile


     C18:2n-6 Linoleic acid [LA]
15.25 ± 1.65
14.99 ± 1.77
     C18:3n-3 α-Linolenic acid [ALA]
0.4 ± 0.2
0.4 ± 0.2
     C20:4n-6 Arachidonic acid [AA]
10.17 ± 1.01
10.6 ± 0.88**
     C20:5n-3 Eicosapentaenoic acid [EPA]
0.62 ± 0.13
0.56 ± 0.24
     C22:4n-6 Docosatetraenoic acid
1.90 ± 0.42
1.99 ± 0.58
     C22:6n-3 Docosahexaenoic acid [DHA]
2.77 ± 0.51
2.82 ± 0.53
     Total PUFA
27.7
31.4

SFA, saturated fatty acid; MUFA, monounsaturated fatty acid; PUFA, polyunsaturated fatty acid. % peak area calculated from fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs). Minor fractions of fatty acid profiles not shown. Significantly different from high SFA diet: *P < 0.05, ** P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001, nd, not detectable. Mean ± sd

Poppitt et al. Lipids in Health and Disease 2005 4:30   doi:10.1186/1476-511X-4-30