A CLA enriched diet improves organ damage associated with the metabolic syndrome in spontaneous hypertensive rats

The purpose of this study was to provide evidence that dietary CLA can prevent the pathogenesis of metabolic syndrome in tissue structure, suggesting potential benefits in the onset of this syndrome. Wistar male spontaneous hypertensive rats (SHR), were classified into two groups that were fed a standard diet for eight weeks: one with 7.5% sunflower oil (V-SHR group), and the other with 6% sunflower oil and 1.5% CLA (CLA-SHR group). A control healthy group consisted of Kyoto-Wistar male rats fed the standard diet with 7.5% sunflower oil. The animals were sacrificed, and sections of liver, kidneys and aorta were fixed in 10% formaldehyde, and then stained with Hematoxylin and Eosin. Only in the V-SHR group, the stain of the aorta indicated irregular endothelial morphology; liver parenchyma was characterized by an infiltration of inflammatory neutrophils, fibrosis, thickening of the portal vein epithelium, hepatocyte hyperplasia and steatosis. The renal tissue of this group evidenced hyperplasia in the cells of the endothelial of Bowman's capsule. Abnormal histological changes were not observed in either the control group or the rats fed with CLA, suggesting a protective role of CLA in the onset of metabolic syndrome.