Sn1,3 regiospecificity of DHA (22:6ω-3) of plant origin (DHA-Canola<sup>®</sup>) facilitates its preferential tissue incorporation in rats compared to sn2 DHA in algal oil at low dietary inclusion levels

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2025

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Belobrajdic, D.P.
Dallimore, J.A.
Adams, M.J.
Singh, S.P.
Abeywardena, M.Y.

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Nutrients, 2025; 17(8):1-18

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Background/Objectives: Regiospecificity in triacylglycerols (TAGs) influences absorption/bioavailability of dietary fatty acids. We evaluated whether sn1,3 located DHA (22:6ω3) of a transgenic higher plant (DHA-Canola®) preferentially facilitates its tissue incorporation as compared to sn2 positioned DHA (DHASCO® of algal origin). Methods: Sprague Dawley rats were fed diets (12 weeks) containing DHA-Canola or DHA-Control (a blend of DHASCO® and high oleic sunflower seed oil (HOSO)) at 0.3%, 1%, 3%, and 6% (w/w), or 7% HOSO prior to determination of tissue fatty acids. Results: At 0.3 and 1% w/w supplementation, plasma, liver and cardiac tissue DHA incorporation was higher in the plant-based oil (DHA-Canola vs. DHA-Control; p < 0.05), whilst sn2 enriched algal oil yielded better outcomes at higher doses (at 3% inclusion, plasma values were 7.8 vs. 5.9%, and at 6% supplementation, 10.0 vs. 7.9 in favor of DHA-Control, p < 0.05) At lower intakes, sn1,3 regiospecificity (DHA-Canola) increased the omega-3 index, a clinically relevant biomarker, compared to DHA-Control (p < 0.05). Similarly, a build-up of 20:5ω3 and 22:5ω3 occurred with DHA-Canola. Consequently, total omega3s were higher in this latter group. Conclusions: At lower intakes, sn1,3 regiospecificity of DHA leads to its preferential tissue incorporation compared to sn2 DHA.

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Data source: Supplementary materials, https://www.mdpi.com/article/10.3390/nu17081306/s1

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Copyright 2025 by the authors.Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

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