Oxidative stress and fatty acid profile in Wistar rats subjected to acute food restriction and refeeding with high-fat diets

PURPOSE: To assess oxidative stress and the profile of fatty acids incorporated into the hepatic tissue of animals refed with high-fat (HF) diets after acute food restriction. METHODS: Fifty male Wistar rats were divided into five groups and fasting for 48 hours. One group was sacrificed without refeeding (NR), a control group (C) was refed with the standard AIN-93 diet and the remaining groups with HF diets respectively consisting of hydrogenated vegetable oil (PHVO), trans-free (TF) margarine and trans-free margarine enriched with omega-3 and omega-6 (O). After this period the animals were sacrificed for malondialdehyde (MDA), catalase and hepatic fatty acid determination. RESULTS: The groups refed with HF diets showed elevation of MDA levels compared to the C group (p<0.001 for GVH and p<0.01 for TF and O). Hepatic catalase activity was higher in the TF and O groups compared to group C (p<0.05 for both). The amount of saturated fatty acids was lower in the PHVO and O groups compared to the remaining ones (p<0.001). CONCLUSION: The consumption of high-fat diets after prolonged fasting favors oxidative imbalance in hepatic tissue.