Year: 2009
Type: dissertation
Abstract: Punicic acid (c9t11c13-CLNA) is a conjugated linolenic fatty acid found at 72% concentration in\npomegranate seed oil. While research has elucidated the positive health benefits of punicic\nacid’s metabolite, c9t11-CLA, little is known about the physiological effects of punicic acid (PA).\nThis senior honors research thesis aims to elucidate how punicic acid alters fat and energy\nmetabolism in a mouse model. Male C57Bl6 mice were fed diets of 0% PA, 1% PA, or 2% PA\nfor 4 or 16 weeks. We measured the extent to which punicic acid affected weight gain, food\nintake, food efficiency, insulin sensitivity, and fatty acid composition in mice. Diets containing\nincreased levels of punicic acid resulted in a dose-responsive accumulation of conjugated\nlinolenic acid in skeletal muscle, liver, and epididymal adipose tissues. In an effort to determine\nif punicic acid altered genes responsive to peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma\n(PPARγ), I investigated how punicic acid alters the expression of genes involved in lipid and\nenergy metabolism. Levels of mRNA of AP2 (FABP4), UCP1, and PPARγ were not significantly\naltered in epididymal fat by dietary treatments during the 16-week feeding study, while\nexpression of UCP2 was significantly increased in mice fed the 2% PA diet. It remains to be\ndetermined if punicic acid serves as a weak ligand for PPARγ. Understanding the mechanism of\npunicic acid and its effects on energy metabolism may ultimately improve recommendations for\nthose battling obesity or the numerous diseases associated with it.
Author: Kathleen Nemer
Language: English
Subfield: Nutrition and Dietetics
Field: Nursing
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W15699185