Esteatose hepática em ratos: efeitos de dieta com diferentes níveis de substituição lipídica por dieptanoína e trieptanoína.

Abstract

Hepatic steatosis is characterised by accumulation of triacylglycerols in the cytoplasm of hepatocytes at a level that reaches 5 to 40% of the weight of the liver. Its prevalence has increased worldwide, having a strong relationship with diabetes mellitus type 2 and obesity, diseases that constitute a global epidemic. Despite having been considered for a considerable time as a benign entity, it is known that a synergic combination with other factors, such as oxidative stress, can trigger a cascade of inflammatory reactions, leading to fibrogenesis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Its etiology, despite not being totally elucidated, shows a strong correlation with insulin resistence, and is actually considered a hepatic manifestation of metabolic syndrome. However, it can be triggered by other factors; such as prolonged total parenteral nutrition, bariatric surgery, proteincalory malnutrition and the use of drugs. The actual prevalence is unknown but it affects adults and children, and is emerging as the most common chronic condition of the liver in the western world. Though an effective pharmacological treatment does not exist, all patients are encouraged to reduce their ingestion of fat and to practise regular physical exercise, with the objective of increasing their daily energy expenditure. Strategies of nutritional intervention and control of associated metabolic risk factors need to be evaluated. Aiming at contributing to the discussion of the problem, this dissertation presents two articles: a literature review of the main strategies of dietetic therapy in the treatment of steatosis, dealing with energy intake and the intake of macro- and micronutrients that exert effects on the prevention, treatment and/or retard the progression of the disease; the second article refers to an experimental study of weaned Wistar rats that received a diet with substitution of soy oil with an experimental oil rich in 9 triheptanoin, a triacylglycerol of heptanoic acid (7:0), that was being used in disorders of mitochondrial oxidative metabolism. The animals that received AIN-93 diets with 0, 30 and 50% of substitution of soy oil with experimental oil developed hepatic steatosis. The histological analysis revealed half the number of severe cases of hepatic steatosis in the animals with 50% substitution in relation to those with 0% substitution. Other variables demonstrated a potential protector effect of the experimental oil against hepatic steatosis as absolute and relative liver weight. Such an effect, associated with the clinical evidence of the success of triheptanoin with several mitochondrial disorders, awakes interest in the future of its application for other disorders.