Original Scientific Article Fatty Acid Composition and Oxidative Stress Parameters in Plasma after Fish Oil Supplementation in Aging

Abstract. Fish oil affects oxidative stress parameters and changes in phospholipids fatty acids profiles in plasma, erythrocytes and tissues. We examined the effects of fish oil supplementation in young and old male Wistar rats (3 and 22 months old) on plasma phospholipids fatty acids profiles and blood oxidative stress parameters. Twenty young and twenty aged Wistar rats were randomly divided into four groups (ten animals each): two control groups and two supplemented groups treated for 6 weeks with fish oil capsules containing 45 mg eicosapentanoic acid (EPA) and 30 mg docosahexanoic acid (DHA). Fish oil supple-mentation changed the percentage of long chain fatty acids (FAs): the elevated percentage of eicosatrienoic acid (ETA, 20:3), eicosapentanoic (EPA, 20:5), docosapentanoic acid (DPA, 22:5), n-3 fat-ty acids and decreased arachidonic acid (AA, 20:4). However, there were no age-related changes in total SH groups, the percentages of palmitic (16:0), palmitoleic (16:1), oleic (18:1 (n-9)) and linoleic acid (18:2) in plasma phospholipids and MUFA and they were neither reversed nor prevented by fish oil sup-plementation. Results showed that fish oil supplementation increased SOD and CAT activities in erythro-cytes, and PON activity in the blood plasma of both young and aged rats. Furthermore, fish oil supple-mentation decreased lipid peroxidation (MDA) and nitrite levels in both young and aged rats implying better antioxidant protection and a lower level of oxidative pressure after fish oi