Oleyl alcohol inhibits intestinal long-chain fatty acid absorption in rats

Long-chain fatty acids are important nutrients, but obesity is the most com mon nutritional disorder in humans. In this study we investigated the effec t of oleyl alcohol on the intestinal long-chain fatty acid absorption in ra ts. We administered [C-14]oleic acid and oleyl alcohol as lipid emulsion in traduodenally in unanesthetized lymph-cannulated rats and measured the lymp hatic output of oleic acid. Second, we orally administered lipid emulsion w ith a stomach tube and measured the luminal and mucosal oleic acid residues . Furthermore, rats were fed oleyl alcohol as a dietary component for 20 da ys, and fecal lipid and the weight of adipose tissues were measured. In lym ph-cannulated rats, triglyceride and [C-14]oleic acid output in the lymph w ere significantly lower in the presence of oleyl alcohol when compared with the absence of oleyl alcohol in a dose-dependent manner. The radioactivity remaining in the intestinal lumen was more strongly detected in rats that had been orally administered oleyl alcohol than in the controls. The feces of rats fed an oleyl-alcohol-added diet contained much higher amounts of li pids, and the weights of their adipose tissues were significantly lower tha n in the control group. These results suggest that oleyl alcohol inhibits t he rat gastrointestinal absorption of long-chain fatty acids in vivo.