Acute Fatty Acid Intervention Study (AFAST) (AFAST)

Acute Fatty Acid Intervention Study

The main objective of this study is to elucidate whether different dietary fatty acids (SFA, PUFA, butter fat and margarine fat) in a high fat load will have different effects on PBMC gene expression profiles. Secondary objectives are to elucidate the effects of these fat loads on individual plasma free fatty acid profiles, triglycerides and cholesterol levels.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Cardiovascular Disease; The Metabolic Syndrome
• Intervention / Treatment: Dietary supplement: High fat meal

Detailed Description

Nutrition plays a key role in the development of metabolic disorders like cardiovascular disease and the metabolic syndrome. Nutrients that can contribute to the risk of developing such diseases are fatty acids (FAs). It is known that fatty acids mediate their metabolic effects via changes in gene expression, through binding and subsequent activation of the transcription factor peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR). In addition, it is known that unsaturated fatty acids are better ligands for PPAR than saturated fatty acids. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) express PPARalpha and are relatively easy to isolate from whole blood. We previously showed that the gene expression profiles of these cells can reflect free fatty acid increases during fasting. The question still remains whether dietary FA can influence gene expression in a similar way and, if so, whether different dietary FA result in different gene expression changes and subsequent activation of other pathways.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 21
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Netherlands
  • Gelderland
    • Wageningen, Gelderland, Netherlands, 6700 AH
      • Wageningen University

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years to 30 years (Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: Male

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Healthy Caucasian men
• age between 18 and 30 years

Exclusion Criteria:

• Allergic to fish oil
• Allergic to margarine
• Allergic to cow milk or dairy products
• Current or recent (<4 weeks) use of fish oil supplements or more then four times fish/week; 24.35 g of EPA-DHA of fish per month (800 mg/day) as judged by the questionnaire.
• Body mass index (BMI) < 18 or > 25 kg/m2
• Urine glucose concentrations outside normal ranges (low to non-detectable)
• Fasting blood glucose outside the normal range (3 - 5.5 mmol/L)
• Tobacco smoking
• Taking medication that may influence the study results
• Received inoculations within 2 months of starting the study or planned to during the study
• Donated or intended to donate blood from 2 months before the study till two months after the study
• Diagnosed with any long-term medical condition (eg., diabetes, hemophilia, cardiovascular disease, anemia, gastrointestinal disease)
• Vegetarian

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Basic Science
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Crossover Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

3

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: High polyunsaturated fat meal; A high fat milkshake containing 55g of fat, mainly PUFA	Dietary supplement: High fat meal; A high fat milkshake containing 55g of fat
Experimental: High monounsaturated fat meal; A high fat milkshake containing 55g of fat, mainly MUFA	Dietary supplement: High fat meal; A high fat milkshake containing 55g of fat
Experimental: High saturated fat meal; A high fat milkshake containing 55g of fat, mainly SFA	Dietary supplement: High fat meal; A high fat milkshake containing 55g of fat

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) gene expression profiles	0, 2, 4, 6, 8 hours

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Plasma free fatty acid profiles	0, 6 hours
Plasma free fatty acids	0, 2, 4, 6, 8 hours
Plasma cholesterol	0, 2, 4, 6, 8 hours
Plasma triglycerides	0, 2, 4, 6, 8 hours

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Wageningen University
• Collaborators: Dutch Dairy Organization (NZO)
• Investigators: Study Director: Lydia A Afman, PhD, Wageningen University; Study Chair: Michael Müller, PhD, Wageningen University

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Bouwens M, Grootte Bromhaar M, Jansen J, Muller M, Afman LA. Postprandial dietary lipid-specific effects on human peripheral blood mononuclear cell gene expression profiles. Am J Clin Nutr. 2010 Jan;91(1):208-17. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.2009.28586. Epub 2009 Nov 18.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: January 1, 2008
• Primary Completion (Actual): March 1, 2008
• Study Completion (Actual): March 1, 2008

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: October 21, 2009
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: October 21, 2009
• First Posted (Estimate): October 22, 2009

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): October 22, 2009
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: October 21, 2009
• Last Verified: October 1, 2009

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: postprandial; gene expression profiles; microarray
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Glucose Metabolism Disorders; Metabolic Diseases; Insulin Resistance; Hyperinsulinism; Cardiovascular Diseases; Metabolic Syndrome
• Other Study ID Numbers: NL19273.081.07; ABR19273