| Abstract | dc.description.abstract | Background: Fatty acids can modulate lipid metabolism,
this is related to insulin resistance (IR). This study evaluated
the relationship of plasma fatty acid profile with IR, fuel oxidative
metabolism and plasma lipid concentration in
‘healthy’ women. Methods: Sixteen ‘healthy’, sedentary and
non-obese women were evaluated under fasting conditions
for fuel oxidation, plasma fatty acid profile, free fatty acids,
triglycerides, glucose and insulin concentrations. IR, fuel oxidation
and plasma lipids were measured under insulin-stimulated
conditions. Using the Spearman test the correlation
between relevant variables was assessed. Stepwise multiple
regression analysis was done to identify the main clinical/
metabolic and fatty acid determinants of IR. Results: Plasma
arachidonic acid content (%) determined IR, and in combina-tion with insulin-stimulated plasma triglyceride concentration
explained 45% of the IR variance. IR was inversely related
to physical fitness (rs = –0.48, p = 0.01). The latter was
inversely associated to plasma saturated fatty acid content
(%) (rs = –0.48, p ! 0.01), but directly associated to plasma
docosahexaenoic acid content (%) (rs = 0.40, p = 0.04). Conclusions:
Support for the hypothesis that specific fatty acids
influence IR is provided. Plasma arachidonic acid was associated
to IR, independent on clinical/metabolic study variables.
Docosahexaenoic and saturated fatty acids could
potentially affect insulin action through modulating mitochondrial
oxidative function. | en_US |
