myristic acid ssociated with favourable lipid

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Interesting study done in monks resulting in favorable lipid changes.

I thought myristic acid was bad for us?

Title: Variations in daily intakes of myristic and -linolenic acids in

sn-2 position modify lipid profile and red blood cell membrane fluidity

Author(s): Henry Dabadie ; Claude Motta ; e Peuchant ; Pascale

LeRuyet ; François Mendy

Source: British Journal of Nutrition Volume: 96 Number: 2 Page:

283 -- 289

DOI: 10.1079/BJN20061813

Publisher: CABI Publishing

Abstract: The present study evaluated the effects of moderate intakes

of myristic acid (MA), at 1·2 % and 1·8 % of total energy (TE),

associated with a 0·9 % TE intake of -linolenic acid (ALA) on lipid

and fatty acid profiles and red blood cell membrane fluidity.

Twenty-nine monks without dyslipidaemia were enrolled in a 1-year

nutritional study in which two experimental diets were tested for 3

months each: diet 1, MA 1·2 % and ALA 0·9 %; diet 2, MA 1·8 % and ALA

0·9 %. A control diet (MA 1·2 %, ALA 0·4 %) was given 3 months before

diets 1 and 2. Thus, two different levels of MA (1·2 %, 1·8 %) and ALA

(0·4 %, 0·9 %) were tested. Intakes of other fatty acids were at

recommended levels. Samples were obtained on completion of all three

diets. For fluidity analysis, the red blood cells were labelled with

16-doxylstearate and the probe incorporated the membrane where

relaxation-correlation time was calculated. Diet 1 was associated with

a decrease in total cholesterol, in LDL-cholesterol, in

triacylglycerols and in the ratio of total to HDL-cholesterol; ALA and

EPA levels were increased in both phospholipids and cholesterol

esters. Diet 2 was associated with a decrease in triacylglycerols and

in the ratios of total to HDL-cholesterol and of triacylglycerols to

HDL-cholesterol, and with an increase in HDL-cholesterol; EPA levels

were decreased in phospholipids and cholesterol esters. Red blood cell

membrane fluidity was increased in both diets (P<0·0001), but the

higher increase was obtained with diet 1, mainly in the oldest

subjects. Intakes of myristic acid (1·2 %TE) and ALA (0·9 %TE), both

mainly in the sn-2 position, were associated with favourable lipid and

n-3 long-chain fatty acid profiles. These beneficial effects coexisted

with particularly high membrane fluidity, especially among the oldest

subjects.

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