Mead acid is not indicator of true EFAD

[Alpred]

Eur J Pediatr. 1986 Apr;145(1-2):109-15.

Fatty acid composition of plasma lipids in Nigerian children with
protein-energy malnutrition.


Koletzko B, Abiodun PO, Laryea MD, Bremer HJ.


The fatty acid (FA) composition of the main plasma lipids was
analysed
in eight well-nourished, generally healthy Nigerian children aged
14.1
+/- 7.2 months and in 17 malnourished children (8 marasmus, 9
kwashiorkor) aged 14.6 +/- 3.8 months within the first 2 days of
admission at the Dept. of Child Health, University of Benin. In
comparison to the control group, the malnourished children showed a
marked decrease of polyunsaturated FA with low linoleic acid, mainly
in sterol esters (STE), and severely reduced linoleic acid
metabolites, including arachidonic acid, in all lipid fractions.
omega-3-FA were not altered except for a reduction of
docosapentaenoic
and docosahexaenoic acids in phospholipids. Clearly increased values
were found for saturated FA in STE and for the non-essential
monoenoic
FA in all lipid classes. This pattern indicates the presence of
essential fatty acid deficiency in the malnourished children. There
was no significant difference between marasmus and kwashiorkor. Eight
malnourished children were followed up in the early phase of recovery
during hospital treatment 14.0 +/- 3.1 days after obtaining the first
sample. Linoleic acid had increased again in STE, but its metabolites
were as low or even lower than before. An impaired activity of
delta-6-
desaturase, the rate limiting enzyme of linoleic acid metabolism, in
suggested by elevated substrate-product-ratios of this enzyme in
untreated children with protein energy malnutrition and in the early
phase of recovery, which may be due to low insulin levels, protein
and
zinc deficiency. The trientetraen ratio (20:3 omega 9/20:4 omega 6)
thus is not a reliable indicator of essential FA status in protein-
energy malnutrition.
PMID: 3089792