ASPIRIN PROMOTES HEPATIC TRIACYLGLYCEROL ACCUMULATION IN ESSENTIAL FATTY-ACID DEFICIENT JAPANESE-QUAIL

This study was conducted to investigate whether the effect of a high d ose of aspirin on hepatic triacylglycerol content is altered by dietar y essential fatty acids (EFA) in Japanese quail. The birds were given an EFA-free or EFA-adequate [containing 2% (w/w) linoleic acid] diet a d libitum from 7 to 24 days of age. On the final experimental day, the birds received vehicle or 800 mg aspirin/kg body weight intraperitone ally and were killed 4h subsequently. In birds fed the EFA-free diet, hepatic triacylglycerol content was more than 2 times higher after asp irin compared with vehicle treatment; in contrast, aspirin had no affe ct in birds fed the EFA-adequate diet. Liver malic enzyme and phosphat idate phosphohydrolase activities, which are related to lipid synthesi s, were not affected by dietary EFA or aspirin treatment. Liver carnit ine palmitoyltransferase activity in the birds fed the EFA-free diet w as significantly lower than that in the birds fed the EFA-adequate die t, but aspirin did not affect this activity. In groups given the EFA-f ree diet, peroxisomal beta-oxidation was increased by the aspirin trea tment. We conclude that acute administration of aspirin to Japanese qu ail on an EFA-free diet induces hepatic triacylglycerol accumulation, and that changes in lipid synthesis and degradation do not contribute to this phenomenon.