Retina fatty acid composition of piglets fed from birth with a linoleic acid–rich vegetable-oil formula for infants

Abstract

The effects of a vegetable-oil–based formula containing 30% 18:2n–6 (18:2 ω–6), 0.8% 18:3n–3, and no n–6 or n–3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPs) on retina total lipid, ethanolamine phosphoglyceride (EPG), and phosphatidylcholine (PC) fatty acid composition were studied in neonatal piglets. Term-gestation piglets were fed sow milk (SMF) or the formula (FF) from birth for 5, 10, 15, or 25 d. After 25 d feeding, the 22:6n–3 was reduced by 24% in total lipid, 20% in EPG, and 28% in PC of retinas of FF relative to SMF piglets. A compensatory increase in 22:4n–6 and 22:5n–6 concentrations occured in retina total lipid, EPG, and PC of FF animals. The data suggest that the exclusive feeding of formulas devoid of LCPs and high in 18:2n–6 and/or 18:2n–6 and 18: 3n–3 compromises normal accretion of 22:6n–3 in neonatal piglet retina. The potential reversibility of these changes or their effects on vision are not known.