Saturated fatty acid (SFA) status and SFA intake exhibit different relations with serum total cholesterol and lipoprotein cholesterol: a mechanistic explanation centered around lifestyle-induced low-grade inflammation.

We investigated the relations between fatty acid status and serum total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and total cholesterol/HDL cholesterol ratio in five Tanzanian ethnic groups and one Dutch group. Total cholesterol/HDL cholesterol ratio is a widely used coronary artery disease (CAD) risk factor. Fatty acid status was determined by measurement of fatty acids in serum cholesterol esters and erythrocytes.

Interrelationships between maternal DHA in erythrocytes, milk and adipose tissue. Is 1 wt% DHA the optimal human milk content? Data from four Tanzanian tribes differing in lifetime stable intakes of fish.

Little is known about the interrelationships between maternal and infant erythrocyte-DHA, milk-DHA and maternal adipose tissue (AT)-DHA contents. We studied these relationships in four tribes in Tanzania (Maasai, Pare, Sengerema and Ukerewe) differing in their lifetime intakes of fish. Cross-sectional samples were collected at delivery and after 3 d and 3 months of exclusive breast-feeding.

DHA status is positively related to motor development in breastfed African and Dutch infants.

Objectives: Docosahexaenoic (DHA) and arachidonic (AA) acids are important for neurodevelopment. We investigated the relation between erythrocyte (RBC) DHA and AA contents and neurological development, by assessment of General Movements (GMs), in populations with substantial differences in fish intakes.

Methods: We included 3-month-old breastfed infants of three Tanzanian tribes: Maasai (low fish, n = 5), Pare (intermediate fish, n = 32), and Sengerema (high fish, n = 60); and a Dutch population (low-intermediate, fish, n = 15).

Vitamin D status indicators in indigenous populations in East Africa.

Purpose: Sufficient vitamin D status may be defined as the evolutionary established circulating 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] matching our Paleolithic genome.

Methods: We studied serum 25(OH)D [defined as 25(OH)D₂ + 25(OH)D₃] and its determinants in 5 East African ethnical groups across the life cycle: Maasai (MA) and Hadzabe (HA) with traditional life styles and low fish intakes, and people from Same (SA; intermediate fish), Sengerema (SE; high fish), and Ukerewe (UK; high fish). Samples derived from non-pregnant adults (MA, HA, SE), pregnant women (MA, SA, SE), mother-infant couples at delivery (UK), infants at delivery and their lactating mothers at 3 days (MA, SA, SE), and lactating mothers at 3 months postpartum (SA, SE).

Gestational age dependent changes of the fetal brain, liver and adipose tissue fatty acid compositions in a population with high fish intakes.

Introduction: There are no data on the intrauterine fatty acid (FA) compositions of brain, liver and adipose tissue of infants born to women with high fish intakes.

Subjects And Methods: We analyzed the brain (n=18), liver (n=14) and adipose tissue (n=11) FA compositions of 20 stillborn infants with different gestational ages (range 8-38 weeks) born to Tanzanian women with low linoleic acid (LA) intakes and high intakes of docosahexaenoic (DHA) and arachidonic (AA) acids from local fish.

Results And Discussion: With advancing gestation, brain saturated-FA (SAFA; in g/100g FA), polyunsaturated-FA (PUFA), DHA, 20:3ω6, 22:4ω6 and 22:5ω6 increased, while monounsaturated-FA (MUFA), 20:3ω9, 22:3ω9 and AA decreased.

Fatty acid compositions of preterm and term colostrum, transitional and mature milks in a sub-Saharan population with high fish intakes.

Background: There are no data on the fatty acid (FA) compositions of preterm and term milks for sub-Saharan African populations with advancing lactation. However, it is generally acknowledged that our ancestors evolved in sub-Saharan East-Africa, where they inhabited the land-water ecosystems.

Methods: We compared the FA-compositions of preterm (28-36 weeks) and term (37-42) colostrum (2-5 day), transitional (6-15) and mature (16-56) milks in rural African women with stable dietary habits and lifelong high freshwater fish intakes.

Traditionally living populations in East Africa have a mean serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration of 115 nmol/l.

Cutaneous synthesis of vitamin D by exposure to UVB is the principal source of vitamin D in the human body. Our current clothing habits and reduced time spent outdoors put us at risk of many insufficiency-related diseases that are associated with calcaemic and non-calcaemic functions of vitamin D. Populations with traditional lifestyles having lifelong, year-round exposure to tropical sunlight might provide us with information on optimal vitamin D status from an evolutionary perspective.

Fetal intrauterine whole body linoleic, arachidonic and docosahexaenoic acid contents and accretion rates.

Introduction: There is no information on the whole body fatty acid (FA) contents of preterm or term infants, although scattered information on the FA-composition of many organs is available.

Material And Methods: We collected data on the weights, lipid contents and FA-compositions of the quantitatively most important fetal organs of appropriate for gestational age (AGA) Western infants. From these we estimated the total body contents of linoleic (LA), arachidonic (AA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA) acids at 25, 35 and 40 weeks of gestation.

Gestational age dependent content, composition and intrauterine accretion rates of fatty acids in fetal white adipose tissue.

Background: Little is known about the gestational age (GA) dependent content, composition and intrauterine accretion rates of fatty acids (FA) in fetal white adipose tissue (WAT).

Objective & Design: To acquire this information, we collected abdominal subcutaneous WAT samples from 40 preterm and term fetuses. Their GA ranged from 22 to 43 weeks.

A maternal erythrocyte DHA content of approximately 6 g% is the DHA status at which intrauterine DHA biomagnifications turns into bioattenuation and postnatal infant DHA equilibrium is reached.

Purpose: Higher long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCP) in infant compared with maternal lipids at delivery is named biomagnification. The decline of infant and maternal docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) status during lactation in Western countries suggests maternal depletion. We investigated whether biomagnification persists at lifelong high fish intakes and whether the latter prevents a postpartum decline of infant and/or maternal DHA status.

Postdelivery changes in maternal and infant erythrocyte fatty acids in 3 populations differing in fresh water fish intakes.

Introduction: Long-chain polyunsaturated (LCP) fatty acids (FA) are important during infant development. Mother-to-infant FA-transport occurs at the expense of the maternal status. Maternal and infant FA-status change rapidly after delivery.

Differences in preterm and term milk fatty acid compositions may be caused by the different hormonal milieu of early parturition.

Introduction: The hormonal milieus of pregnancy and lactation are driving forces of nutrient fluxes supporting infant growth and development. The decrease of insulin sensitivity with compensatory hyperinsulinemia with advancing gestation, causes adipose tissue lipolysis and hepatic de novo lipogenesis (DNL).

Subjects And Methods: We compared fatty acid (FA) contents and FA-indices for enzyme activities between preterm (28-36 weeks) and term (37-42) milks, and between colostrum (2-5 days), transitional (6-15) and mature (16-56) milks.

The relation between the omega-3 index and arachidonic acid is bell shaped: synergistic at low EPA+DHA status and antagonistic at high EPA+DHA status.

Introduction: The relation between docosahexaenoic (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic (EPA) vs. arachidonic acid (AA) seems characterized by both synergism and antagonism.

Materials And Methods: Investigate the relation between EPA+DHA and AA in populations with a wide range of EPA+DHA status and across the life cycle.

Intrauterine, postpartum and adult relationships between arachidonic acid (AA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).

Erythrocyte (RBC) fatty acid compositions from populations with stable dietary habits but large variations in RBC-arachidonic (AA) and RBC-docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) provided us with insight into relationships between DHA and AA. It also enabled us to estimate the maternal RBC-DHA (mRBC-DHA) status that corresponded with no decrease in mRBC-DHA during pregnancy, or in infant (i) RBC-DHA or mRBC-DHA during the first 3 months postpartum (DHA-equilibrium) while exclusively breastfeeding. At delivery, iRBC-AA is uniformly high and independent of mRBC-AA.

Postpartum changes in maternal and infant erythrocyte fatty acids are likely to be driven by restoring insulin sensitivity and DHA status.

Introduction: Perinatal changes in maternal glucose and lipid fluxes and de novo lipogenesis (DNL) are driven by hormones and nutrients. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) reduces, whereas insulin augments, nuclear abundance of sterol-regulatory-element-binding-protein-1 (SREBP-1), which promotes DNL, stearoyl-CoA-desaturase (SCD, also Δ9-desaturase), fatty acid-(FA)-elongation (Elovl) and FA-desaturation (FADS). Decreasing maternal insulin sensitivity with advancing gestation and compensatory hyperinsulinemia cause augmented postprandial glucose levels, adipose tissue lipolysis and hepatic glucose- and VLDL-production.

Maternal DHA equilibrium during pregnancy and lactation is reached at an erythrocyte DHA content of 8 g/100 g fatty acids.

Low long-chain PUFA (LC-PUFA, or LCP) consumption relates to suboptimal neurodevelopment, coronary artery disease, and [postpartum (PP)] depression. Maternal-to-infant LCP transport during pregnancy and lactation is at the expense of maternal status, a process known as biomagnification. Despite biomagnification, maternal and infant LCP status generally declines during lactation.

Estimated macronutrient and fatty acid intakes from an East African Paleolithic diet.

Our genome adapts slowly to changing conditions of existence. Many diseases of civilisation result from mismatches between our Paleolithic genome and the rapidly changing environment, including our diet. The objective of the present study was to reconstruct multiple Paleolithic diets to estimate the ranges of nutrient intakes upon which humanity evolved.