Relationships between fatty acid patterns of serum, hepatic and biliary lecithins in man effect of sucrose feeding

Abstract The fatty acid patterns of lecithins in serum, hepatic bile and liver tissue were analyzed in 17 patients operated on for uncomplicated gallstone disease or peptic ulcer. In six of the patients 800 kcal of the daily caloric intake were substituted by sucrose for two weeks prior to the sampling of serum, bile, and liver tissue. 1. 1. The fatty acid pattern was roughly the same in serum and hepatic lecithins. In biliary lecithins the proportions of palmitic and linoleic acid were higher, and that of stearic acid lower than in serum and liver tissue. 2. 2. The proportion of linoleic acid decreased and that of oleic acid increased in lecithins of serum, bile and liver tissue upon sucrose feeding of the patients. 3. 3. Significant correlations between the proportions of the individual fatty acids in serum and bile, in serum and liver, and in bile and liver were found. The results indicate that the effect of sucrose feeding of the patients on the fatty acid pattern of serum lecithins cannot be explained by a redistribution of lecithin species between serum and liver or between serum and bile. The availability of linoleic acid in the immediate precursor pool for lecithin synthesis in the liver seems to be of importance for the fatty acid pattern of serum, bile and liver lecithins.