Chronic study of diacylglycerol oil in rats

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the effects of diacylgly cerol oil following long-term administration to rats. Diacylglycerol oil is an edible oil with comparable taste and physicochemical properties of seve ral naturally occurring oils, Diacylglycerol oil can be used as a replaceme nt for any generally used edible oil in the home and has been approved for use in cooking oil in Japan. Male and female Sprague-Dawley rats were divid ed into four groups and fed low-fat (1.7%) basal diets containing an edible oil composed of rapeseed, corn, high linoleic safflower and high oleic saf flower oils at 5.3% (control group 1); an edible oil composed of rapeseed a nd soybean oils at 5.3% (control group 2); diacylglycerol oil at 2.65% plus edible oil composed of rapeseed, corn, high linoleic safflower and high ol eic safflower oils at 2.65% (low-dose group): and diacylglycerol oil at 5.3 % (high-dose group) for 2 years. Interim sacrifices were conducted at weeks 30 and 77 and the study was terminated following 105 weeks of feeding. No compound-related effects were noted on clinical signs, body weights, food c onsumption, cumulative survival rates, hematology, blood chemistry, urinaly sis, organ weights or on microscopic non-neoplastic changes. Compared to co ntrol group 2, but not control group 1, there was a significant increase in the number of high-dose group females with either benign or malignant epit helial mammary gland neoplasms. These changes were not considered biologica lly significant, because the tumor incidence was not similar in control gro up 1 and 2, and the neoplastic findings were not dose related. In summary, the two-year chronic rat study revealed no toxicologically significant or t reatment-related effects of diacylglycerol oil consumption at levels of up to 5.3% in the diet. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.