LIPID-PEROXIDATION, PROSTACYCLIN AND THROMBOXANE A(2) IN PIGS DEPLETED OF VITAMIN-E AND SELENIUM AND SUPPLEMENTED WITH LINSEED OIL

In a 2 x 2 balanced factorial experiment the biochemical effects on pi gs of two dietary factors were investigated. The first factor was alph a-tocopherol and Se supplementation and the second factor was suppleme ntation with alpha-tocopherol-stripped linseed oil. In pigs fed on die ts depleted of alpha-tocopherol and Se, increases in concentrations of markers of lipid peroxidation (4-hydroxynonenal and hexanal) were obs erved, However, skeletal myopathy was only observed in those pigs fed on diets depleted of alpha-tocopherol and Se and supplemented with oil . In those pigs, increased lipid peroxidation was observed in heart an d supraspinatus muscle. The plasma concentration of thromboxane B-2 wa s increased in pigs fed on diets depleted of alpha-tocopherol and Se, suggesting an increased tendency towards platelet aggregation. However , this change was reversed in pigs depleted of alpha-tocopherol and Se , but supplemented with oil. This may have been a consequence of loss of arachidonic acid, the substrate for thromboxane formation, as a res ult of lipid peroxidation.