Association between a low adipose tissue content of polyunsaturated fatty acids and both glucose intolerance and hypertriglyceridemia in apparently healthy men

The fatty acid spectrum of adipose tissue (AT) lipids has been determined in 43 apparently healthy men with different levels of plasma triglycerides (TG) and different degrees of glucose tolerance (GT). Compared to men with normal plasma TG levels those with hypertriglyceridemia (HTG) had a similar percentage of linoleic acid (18:2) but lower amount of fatty acids, tentatively identified as linolenic (18:3) and arachidonic (20:4) acid. Men with HTG also had lower k-values for the i.v. GT. The content of 18:3 and 20:4 was positively correlated to the k-value of the GT and negatively to plasma TG. These correlations were independent of each other. As usual there was a negative correlation between plasma TG levels and the k-value, which however disappeared after partial correlation analysis when 18:3 was kept constant. Apparently a low content of 18:3 in AT is common both in HTG and glucose intolerance (GI) and might partly explain the often seen association between these two metabolic abnormalities. Since the content of 18:2 was normal it is suggested that the low amount of 18:3 and 20:4 was caused by metabolic rather than dietary factors. The possibility that a low content of 18:3 and 20:4 might play a role in the pathogenesis of GI and HTG is discussed.