Table 2.
Erythrocyte fatty acid composition.
| Fatty acid1 | HC | SZ | P value2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saturated fatty acids | |||
| Palmitic acid (16:0) | 16.9 ± 0.21 | 17.8 ± 0.57 | 0.166 |
| Stearic acid (18:0) | 16.1 ± 0.4 | 16.3 ± 0.51 | 0.735 |
| Monounsaturated fatty acids | |||
| Palmitoleic acid (16:1n − 7) | 0.33 ± 0.01 | 0.37 ± 0.04 | 0.235 |
| Vaccenic acid (18:1n − 7) | 1.25 ± 0.03 | 1.36 ± 0.04 | 0.024 |
| Oleic acid (18:1n − 9) | 12.3 ± 0.24 | 12.5 ± 0.29 | 0.509 |
| Polyunsaturated fatty acids | |||
| Linoleic acid (18:2n − 6) | 11.23 ± 0.33 | 9.94 ± 0.33 | 0.009 |
| γ-Linoleic acid (18:3n − 6) | nd | nd | |
| Homo-γ-linolenic (20:3n − 6) | 1.49 ± 0.06 | 1.69 ± 0.07 | 0.034 |
| Arachidonic acid (AA, 20:4n − 6) | 16.1 ± 0.45 | 17.6 ± 0.31 | 0.014 |
| Docosatetraenoic acid (22:4n − 6) | 3.9 ± 0.17 | 4.1 ± 0.19 | 0.276 |
| Docosapentaenoic acid (22:5n − 6) | 0.74 ± 0.03 | 0.91 ± 0.04 | 0.003 |
| α-Linolenic acid (18:3n − 3) | nd | nd | |
| Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5n − 3) | 0.42 ± 0.06 | 0.28 ± 0.04 | 0.091 |
| Docosapentaenoic acid (22:5n − 3) | 2.11 ± 0.09 | 2.11 ± 0.06 | 0.944 |
| Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n − 3) | 4.12 ± 0.21 | 3.26 ± 0.25 | 0.012 |
| EPA + DHA (omega-3 index) | 4.54 ± 0.23 | 3.54 ± 0.27 | 0.007 |
| Ratios | |||
| AA:EPA | 47.1 ± 4.64 | 55.7 ± 5.21 | 0.2361 |
| AA:DHA | 4.14 ± 0.23 | 5.66 ± 0.36 | 0.0007 |
| AA:EPA + DHA | 3.75 ± 0.21 | 5.22 ± 0.35 | 0.0004 |
| LCn − 6/LCn − 3 | 3.46 ± 0.15 | 4.35 ± 0.19 | 0.0007 |
1Weight percent total fatty acids (g/100 g) expressed as mean ± SEM.
2 P values from the t-tests (2-tail).
nd: not detected (below the limit of reliable detection).