INSULIN AND GLUCAGON SECRETION IN ESSENTIAL FATTY ACID DEFICIENT RATS

Essential fatty acids (EFA) are those fatty acids which animals cannot synthesize in amounts adequate for proper growth, maintenance and functioning of many physiological processes 2.There are two common essential fatty acids, linoleic acid [9,12-octadecadienic acid; 18:2 (n-6)] and arachidonic acid [5,8,11,14-eicosatetra-enoic acid; 20:4 (n-6)], which adequately alleviate the symptoms of EFA deficiency in pathologic or experimentally induced conditions i. Linoleic acid is a precursor of arachidonic acid and is converted to the latter by A6 &saturation of linoleic acid to-,I-linolenic acid [ 18: 3 (n-6) ] followed by chain elongation to dihomo-y-linolenic acid [20:3 (n-6)] and then by &5 &saturation to arachidonic acid 3. Arachidonic acid is a precursor of the dienoic series of prostaglandins such as prostaglandin (PG) H2, E2, F2, D2, I2 (prostacyclin), and thromboxane A2. The monoene series of pro-staglandins, uch as PGE,, is derived from dihomo-,/-linolenic acid 3,36 Tissues from essential fatty acid deficient animals ~s,38 contain low levels of lino-leic, linolenic and arachidonic acids and increased accumulation of 5,8,11-eicosatrie-noic acid [20:3 (n-9)] and oleic acid [18:1 (n-9)]. The (n-9)-type of fatty acid