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Updated: Mar 31, 2026
Measuring Oral Fatty Acid Thresholds, Fat Perception, Fatty Food Liking, and Papillae Density in Humans
Published on: June 4, 2014
Evaluation of less invasive methods to assess fatty acids from phospholipid fraction: cheek cell and capillary blood
Andrea de la Garza Puentes1, Rosa Montes Goyanes1,2, Aida Maribel Chisaguano Tonato1
1a Department of Nutrition and Food Science , Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Barcelona , Barcelona , Spain .
Insights
Cheek cells and capillary blood offer viable alternatives to plasma for analyzing fatty acids (FAs) in infants. This study validates these methods for phospholipid FA analysis, particularly for long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFAs).
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Pediatric Nutrition
- Analytical Chemistry
Background:
- Plasma is the standard matrix for fatty acid (FA) analysis, but its collection is challenging in infants.
- There is a need for alternative, less invasive sampling methods for pediatric FA analysis.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate cheek cells and capillary blood as alternative matrices to plasma for phospholipid FA analysis in children.
- To standardize the methodology for FA extraction and analysis from these alternative matrices.
Main Methods:
- Lipid extraction from cheek cells and capillary blood samples.
- Phospholipid isolation using Solid Phase Extraction (SPE) in a 96-well plate format.
- Methylation followed by analysis using fast gas chromatography (GC).
Main Results:
- Strong positive correlations (r = 0.32-0.99) were observed for most FAs, especially long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFAs), between cheek cells/capillary blood and plasma.
- No significant differences were found in the ratios of n-6: n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and n-6: n-3 LC-PUFAs between cheek cells and capillary blood.
Conclusions:
- Cheek cells and capillary blood are suitable alternatives to plasma for phospholipid FA analysis in pediatric populations.
- The proposed methods are particularly effective for analyzing LC-PUFAs, crucial for infant development.
Abstract:
Plasma is the most commonly employed matrix for analyzing fatty acids (FAs), but its extraction is not well accepted in the infant population. The objectives of this study were to evaluate cheek cells and capillary blood as alternatives to plasma sampling for FA analysis and to standardize the methodology. Samples were obtained from 20 children who underwent lipid extraction, phospholipid isolation by Solid Phase Extraction (SPE) in a 96-well plate, methylation, and analysis by fast gas chromatography (GC). A positive correlation was found for most of the FAs, especially long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFAs), in cheek cells and capillary blood versus plasma samples (r = 0.32-0.99). No differences were found in the levels of n-6: n-3 PUFA and n-6: n-3 LC-PUFA ratios between cheek cells and capillary blood. These two proposed samples can therefore be used as alternatives to plasma sampling for phospholipid FA analysis, especially LC-PUFAs.
