Long-chain monounsaturated fatty acids improve endothelial function with altering microbial flora

Fish oil-derived long-chain monounsaturated fatty acids (LCMUFAs) with a carbon chain length longer than 18 units ameliorate cardiovascular risk in mice. In this study, we investigated whether LCMUFAs could improve endothelial functions in mice and humans. In a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, multi-center study, healthy subjects were randomly assigned to either an LCMUFA oil (saury oil) or a control oil (olive and tuna oils) group. Sixty subjects were enrolled and administrated each oil for 4 weeks. For the animal study, ApoE^-/- mice were fed a Western diet supplemented with 3% of either gadoleic acid (C20:1) or cetoleic acid (C22:1) for 12 weeks. Participants from the LCMUFA group showed improvements in endothelial function and a lower trimethylamine-N-oxide level, which is a predictor of coronary artery disease. C20:1 and C22:1 oils significantly improved atherosclerotic lesions and plasma levels of several inflammatory cytokines, including IL-6 and TNF-α. These beneficial effects were consistent with an improvement in the gut microbiota environment, as evident from the decreased ratio of Firmicutes and/ or Bacteroidetes, increase in the abundance of Akkermansia, and upregulation of short-chain fatty acid (SCFA)-induced glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) expression and serum GLP-1 level. These data suggest that LCMUFAs alter the microbiota environment that stimulate the production of SCFAs, resulting in the induction of GLP-1 secretion. Fish oil-derived long-chain monounsaturated fatty acids might thus help to protect against cardiovascular disease.