ANALYSIS OF THE FATTY-ACID COMPOSITION OF THE LIPID CLASSES IN HUMAN BLOOD-SERUM UNDER NORMAL DIET AND WHEN SUPPLEMENTED WITH FISH OIL

Total lipids have been extracted from human serum with chloroform-methanol 2:1 (v/v) and separated into individual classes by TLC. After transesterification the fatty acid methyl esters were analyzed by capillary gas chromatography on an FFAP column. The quantitation of omega-3 fatty acids has been performed using internal and external standards. Internal lipid standards for each lipid class were carried throughout the entire analytical procedure. Under normal diet eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) are incorporated into the lipid classes to different extents: cholesterol esters; EPA, 6.5 +/- 1.9-gamma/ml serum; DHA, 4.3 +/- 1.9-mu-g/ml; phospholipids; EPA, 5.9 +/- 2.7-mu-g/ml; DHA, 31.8 +/- 8.1-mu-g/ml. Fish oil supplementation leads to a 4 to 6-fold rise in EPA and to an approximately 2-fold rise in DHA.