The Relationships between Erythrocyte Membrane n-6 to n-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids Ratio and Blood Lipids and C-reactive Protein in Chinese Adults:An Observational Study

Objective To investigate the relationships between erythrocyte membrane n-6：n-3 PUFAs ratio and blood lipids and high sensitivity C-reactive protein （hs-CRP）. Methods The Chinese and a observational study consisted of a population-based cross-sectiona subsequent 1-year follow-up study of 171 subjects with the fasting cholesterol of 5.13-8.00 mmol/L. study of 456 plasma total Results In the cross-sectional analysis, plasma low-density lipoprotein cholesterol （LDL-c） had a significant and negative association with the erythrocyte membrane n-6：n-3 PUFAs ratio （P for trend=0.019） after adjusting for sex, age and total PUFA percentage. In the follow-up study, 171 subjects were categorized into quartiles by the changes of n-6：n-3 ratio in erythrocyte membrane （△=month 12-month 0）. In the top quartile whose ratios of n-6：n-3 increased by an average of 1.25 during the follow-up, the LDL-c-lowering extent was 3.3 times of that in the lowest quartile whose ratios of n-6：n-3 decreased by an average of 1.13 （-1.07 mmol/L v.s. -0.32 mmol/L）. The hsCRP decreased by 0.11 mg/dL in the lowest quartile while increasing by 0.10 mg/dL in the top quartile （P for difference=0.052）. Conclusion Our results suggested that the balance between n-6 and n-3 fatty acids may optimize the cardiovascular benefits from dietary PUFAs.

Effect of n-3 HUFA levels in rotifers and Artemia on growth and survival of larval black sea bream (Sparus macrocephalus)

Requirement for dietary n-3 HUFA (n-3 highly unsaturated fatty acid) for growth and survival of black sea bream (Sparus macrocephalus) larvae was studied using rotifers and Artemia at various levels of n-3 HUFA. Five treatments with rotifers and Artemia differing in n-3 HUFA were prepared by enriching them with various oil emulsions. Results indicated that dietary n-3 HUFA significantly influence fish n-3 HUFA levels and are essential for growth and survival of black sea bream larvae. The results also indicated that the incorporation of n-3HUFA TG (triacylglycerols) into tissues of larval black sea bream was more effective from natural fish oil in comparison with n-3 HUFA fatty acid ethyl esters from ethyl-esterified oil.

Creating Benefits from Omega-3 Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals

Foods currently eaten by Americans have abundant amounts of essential omega-6 (n-6) nutrients and relatively few omega-3 (n-3) nutrients. The average omega 3 - 6 balance score of typical US foods is about –6. This imbalance causes the average American to accumulate tissue proportions of n-3 and n-6 highly unsaturated fatty acids (HUFA) with about 77% n-6 in HUFA. This HUFA balance links to many chronic health conditions that are made worse by overabundant actions of food-based omega-6 HUFA. Americans currently spend more on treating food-based health conditions than they spend on food. Less medication is needed to treat signs and symptoms when a key dietary cause of the signs and symptoms is prevented. Informed food producers can readily prepare and market new food products with more n-3 and less n-6 nutrients to reverse the current national nutrient imbalance and help people attain and maintain a healthy HUFA balance. New functional foods and nutraceuticals will help consumers shift their financial resources from treating signs and symptoms caused by HUFA imbalance to preventing the nutrient imbalance that causes the need to treat.