Web Release Date: February 8,
Metabolites of Conjugated Isomers of 
-Linolenic Acid (CLnA)
in the Rat
and
Department of Food Science and Nutrition and Dairy Research Center (STELA), Université Laval, Sainte Foy, Québec, Canada G1K 7P4, and INRA, Unité de Nutrition Lipidique, 17 rue Sully, Dijon, France
Received for review October 29, 2004. Revised manuscript received December 21, 2004. Accepted December 23, 2004. We acknowledge financial support from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Council of Canada and the Fonds FCAR and CORPAQ (Gouvernement du Qubec). We are grateful to the Fondation de l'Université Laval for a Ph.D Scholarship to F.D.
Abstract:
Rumelenic (cis-9,trans-11,cis-15 18:3) acid is a naturally occurring conjugated isomer of -linolenic
acid (CLnA) in milk fat. Metabolism in rats was studied using a synthetic CLnA mixture, composed
mainly by equimolar quantities of cis-9,trans-11,cis-15 and cis-9,trans-13,cis-15 CLnA isomers. Their
metabolisms were studied by feeding high quantities of CLnA (150 mg/day) for 4 days to rats that
had been reared on a fatfree diet for 2 weeks. After this period, animals were sacrificed and liver and
epididymal adipose tissue lipids extracted. Six metabolites of the cis-9,trans-11,cis-15 18:3 CLnA
isomers were identified as being cis-7,trans-9,cis-13 16:3, cis-11,trans-13,cis-17 20:3, cis-8,cis-11,trans-13,cis-17 20:4, cis-5,cis-8,cis-11,trans-13,cis-17 20:5, cis-7,cis-10,cis-13,trans-15,cis-19 22:5, and cis-4,cis-7,cis-10,cis-13,trans-15,cis-19 22:6 acids. Two metabolites of cis-9,trans-13,cis-15
18:3 CLnA isomer were also identified by GC-MS as being cis-7,trans-11,cis-13 16:3 and cis-5,cis-8,cis-11,trans-15,cis-17 20:5.
Keywords: Conjugated linolenic acid; fatty acids; lipid metabolism; mass spectrometry
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