Saturated Fats as Potent Anti-Atherogenic Drugs

I hope we are not still scarred by the long onslaught of ingrained sat-fat nonsense over the last few decades?

SCAR TISSUE from Red Hot Chili Peppers
ALBUM: Californication

Courtesy of Youtube.com

LAURIC ACID (12C MEDIUM-CHAIN SATURATED FATTY ACID) ASSOCIATED WITH RELATIVELY HIGHER HDL2b AND LOWER HDL3c

In the previous entry, conclusions from the same research below was discussed. They went further and looked at the lipoprotein subfractions including HDL2b and HDL3c. Mensink et al found that the higher the phospholipid transfer protein (PLTP) activity and the lower the cholesterol ester transfer protein (CETP) activity, the higher the relative abundance of HDL2b, the regression particle, and the lower the HDL3c, a small dense atherogenic particle. Lauric acid produced the highest ratio of PLTP to CETP activity when compared with the control, palmitic or oleic diets after 6-weeks.

Their assessment was "It is now clearly established that CETP and PLTP can modulate the size distribution of serum lipoprotein fractions. On the one hand, CETP can replace lipoprotein cholesteryl esters by hydrolyzable triglycerides which are derived from the triglyceride-rich lipoproteins, favoring the emergence of small-sized LDL, pre-beta-HDL and small-sized alpha-HDL [40]. On the otherhand, PLTP has been shown to promote the formation of both pre-beta-HDL and large-sized alpha-HDL through an inter-HDL fusional mechanism [40]. In the present study, no significant differences in the size distribution of either HDL or LDL fractions were observed in sera from subjects consuming either of the three experimental diets... Despite the absence of modifications of the size distribution of HDL, significant relationships between lipid transfer activities andthe relative abundance of HDL subpopulations were observed among (INDIVIDUAL) subjects consuming the same, standardized diet. Overall, CETP correlated positively with small HDL, but negatively with large HDL, whereas opposite tendencies were observed with PLTP that correlated negatively with small HDL, but positively with the large ones (ie, HDL2b)."

Variations in serum cholesteryl ester transfer and phospholipid transfer activities in healthy women and men consuming diets enriched in lauric, palmitic or oleic acids. Lagrost L, Mensink RP, Guyard-Dangremont V, Temme EH, Desrumaux C, Athias A, Hornstra G, Gambert P. Atherosclerosis. 1999 Feb;142(2):395-402. Email for PDF.







BALANCE OF CETP AND PLTP NECESSARY

Minimization and maximization, respectively, as the Mensink study showed.

What are the dangers of artificially inhibiting CETP and ignoring PLTP activity?

What are the dangers of raising only HDL3c (small dense atherogenic HDL) and lowering HDL2b (the regressive, large/fluffy HDL)??!

The story of Torcetrapib...is one with an extremely unhappy unending...

Well...for one Pfizer is now out of the lipid-heart-disease business (Lipitor® RIP 2011 when it goes generic). Read the TYP report on this CETP-inhibitor and the surprising outcome HERE. Pfizer's $20B Torcetrapib HDL-raising drug unfortunately failed big time (in low-fat, low cholesterol, low saturated fat populations). Not only was an increase of 50% in total HDL observed in humans but also coronary regression was demonstrated in animal studies. Oddly this curious drug was associated with nearly double the deaths in the single human morbidity/mortality trial. Are animal brains as functional or large as human brains? What is the purpose of cholesterol? Are humans brains not laden with cholesterol? In fact 23% of the whole body pool of cholesterol is found in the brain and central nervous system. Although the brain only weighs 2.1% of our total weight, the cholesterol content is the highest compared with any other tissue (23 mg chol/gram). How much cholesterol is in an egg yolk? A measly ~200 mg. Barely enough to support or maintain a smidgeon of your SUPER SAVANT BRAIN. And we're told to have no more than an egg a day? Can you spell autism? Well... probably neither can the great-grandchildren of the geniuses who proposed these low-cholesterol indictments. How many more generations will be affected by the policies propagating the low-fat hypothesis? Are we de-evolving as a species *hint....WALL*E *?

Thematic review series: Brain Lipids. Cholesterol metabolism in the central nervous system during early development and in the mature animal. Journal of Lipid Research, Vol. 45, 1375-1397, August 2004.





BIOACTIVE LIPIDS -- BEST BALANCE -- BETTER THAN Torcetrapib

Fish oil EPA + DHA and seafood naturally lower CETP activity (preventing cholesterol transfer) and power up PLTP (moving phospholipids out of lipoprotein fractions). I had a hard time locating any VAP/NMR data on effects of fish oil components EPA and DHA, but two studies below demonstrate the outcome of EPA and DHA ingestion in depleting phospholipids out of LDL and HDL particles.

(1) Small supplements of N-3 fatty acids change serum low density lipoprotein composition by decreasing phospholid and apolipoprotein B concentrations in young adult women. Terpstra AH et al. Eur J Nutr. 1999 Feb;38(1):20-7.

(2) The effect of dietary n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids on HDL cholesterol in Chukot residents vs Muscovites. Astakhova T et al. Lipids. 1991 Apr;26(4):261-5.

Native Chukot Peninsula residents, in contrast to Muscovites, consume a diet rich in n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. This dietary peculiarity is reflected in differences in plasma lipid and apolipoprotein contents. The Chukot residents have lower contents of total cholesterol, triglyceride, LDL (low density lipoprotein) cholesterol and apolipoprotein B, but higher HDL (high density lipoprotein) cholesterol levels than do Muscovites. The apolipoprotein A-I levels were identical in both groups. A higher HDL cholesterol to apolipoprotein A-I ratio was determined in the coastline Chukot residents (0.52 +/- 0.01) than in Muscovites (0.43 +/- 0.01; p less than 0.01). In contrast to Muscovites, the coastline Chukot residents also had higher n-3 and lower n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid percentages in plasma and erythrocyte lipids, and lower phosphatidylcholine and higher sphingomyelin or phosphatidylethanolamine levels in HDL2b and HDL3. The higher HDL cholesterol levels in the plasma of the coastline Chukot residents appears to reflect the higher cholesterol-scavenging capacity of their HDL. We conclude from this study that the regular consumption of dietary n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids by the coastline Chukot residents decreased LDL cholesterol transfer from plasma to peripheral cells, and enhanced cholesterol efflux from cellular membranes toward HDL.

A WONDERFUL COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW THAT I *HEART*

Nagao K, Yanagita T. Bioactive lipids in metabolic syndrome. Prog Lipid Res. 2008 Mar;47(2):127-46.

"This review explores the physiological functions and molecular actions of bioactive lipids, such as n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, conjugated fatty acids, sterols, medium-chain fatty acids (LIKE SATURATED FAT LAURIC, CAPRIC, CAPROIC, CAPRYLIC ACIDS), diacylglycerols and phospholipids, in the development of metabolic syndrome. Dietary bioactive lipids suppress the accumulation of abdominal adipose tissue and lipids in the liver and serum, and alleviate hypertension and type 2 diabetes through the transcriptional regulation of lipid and glucose metabolism. "

[DRUM ROLL...] DIETARY SATURATED FATTY ACIDS ACT LIKE NIACIN

Fatty acids including saturated fatty acids also bind PUMA-G and HM74 receptors. This is the receptor family that Niacin binds to and exerts its potent abilities to regress plaque (raise HDL2b 200-300%, lower TGs 40-60%) and evoke its anti-inflammatory effects. See Table 1 full list of the range of ketone body and the saturated fatty acids and their relative receptor affinities.

Taggart A, Waters MG et al. (D)-beta-Hydroxybutyrate inhibits adipocyte lipolysis via the nicotinic acid receptor PUMA-G. J Biol Chem. 2005 Jul 22;280(29):26649-52. Full 'accelerated publication' PDF here.

Other fatty acids which bind this astounding receptor PUMA-G are in listing of decreasing potency:
--Hydroxy-butyrate (ketone bodies associated with exercise training and intermittent fasting)
--Lactate (by-product of anaerobic exercise, strength training, intense exercise like CALIfornication)
--Acetate (C2), Proprionate (C3)
--Decanoate (C10) = caprylic acid, a medium chain saturated fatty acid (MC SFA)
--Heptanoic acid (C7)
-- Butyrate (C4) = short chain saturated fatty acid from butter oil and produced by gut flora from ingested fiber like oat bran, pectin, etc
--Octanoate (C8) = capric acid, MC SFA
--Pentanoic acid (C5)
--Hexanoate (C6) = caproic acid, MC SFA
--Nicotinic acid (niacin, SLO-NIACIN, NIASPAN) -- binds with high affinity to HM74 receptors