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Review
. 2015 Sep 18;20(9):17339-61.
doi: 10.3390/molecules200917339.

Biological and Nutritional Properties of Palm Oil and Palmitic Acid: Effects on Health

Annamaria Mancini  1   2 , Esther Imperlini  3 , Ersilia Nigro  4 , Concetta Montagnese  5 , Aurora Daniele  6   7 , Stefania Orrù  8   9 , Pasqualina Buono  10   11
Affiliations
Review

Biological and Nutritional Properties of Palm Oil and Palmitic Acid: Effects on Health

Annamaria Mancini et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

A growing body of evidence highlights the close association between nutrition and human health. Fat is an essential macronutrient, and vegetable oils, such as palm oil, are widely used in the food industry and highly represented in the human diet. Palmitic acid, a saturated fatty acid, is the principal constituent of refined palm oil. In the last few decades, controversial studies have reported potential unhealthy effects of palm oil due to the high palmitic acid content. In this review we provide a concise and comprehensive update on the functional role of palm oil and palmitic acid in the development of obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular diseases and cancer. The atherogenic potential of palmitic acid and its stereospecific position in triacylglycerols are also discussed.

Keywords: MUFA; PUFA; SFA; T2DM; TAG; cancer; cardiovascular diseases; obesity; palm oil; palmitic acid.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
A schematic representation showing the hydrolysis of typical PO triglyceride. Palmitic acid, the main SFA in PO, is situated at SN-1 and SN-3 positions of TAGs. The other main FA in PO, oleic acid, is situated at SN-2 position. After digestion, FFAs are involved in the re-synthesis of new triglycerides and/or formation of Ca2+ or Mg2+ soaps. Free fatty acids, FFAs; palm oil, PO; saturated fatty acid, SFA; triglycerides, TAGs.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Triglyceride storage in HEK293 cells. Oil Red O staining of untreated (a) and treated (b) HEK293 cells with PA 1 mM. Red points indicate triglyceride depots; ×40 magnification.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Schematic representation of palm oil and palmitic acid effects on human health.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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