Effects of dietary supplementation with cod liver oil on monocyte thromboplastin synthesis, coagulation and fibrinolysis

Abstract

In a controlled trial 40 healthy persons (20 men and 20 women) were tested before and after a daily supplement with 25 ml cod liver oil for 8 weeks. The diet increased the eicosapentaenoic acid (20:5 n-3) content in serum and monocytes four- to five-fold whereas the arachidonic acid (20:4 n-6) content decreased 10-20% in both serum and monocytes. Stimulation of blood with a low concentration of lipopolysaccharides (LPS) revealed a 40% suppression of LPS-induced thromboplastin synthesis in the monocytes after 8 weeks of CLO intake. In the same LPS stimulation system, men were found to generate significantly more thromboxane B2 than women (4.9 ng ml-1 versus 3.4 ng ml-1). After the CLO supplementation for 8 weeks the thromboxane B2 was reduced by a mean of 70% in women and 60% in men. Factor VII and fibrinogen appeared to be unaltered by CLO intake. Determination of whole blood clot lysis time and tissue plasminogen activator (t-PA) did not indicate any significant influence of n-3 fatty acids on fibrinolysis.