Acta Scientiarum Polonorum Technologia Alimentaria

Introduction. Contemporary diet of men is characterised by a significant contribution of processed and puri- fied products impoverished by technological processing in, e.g., B-group vitamins taking part in the synthesis of fatty acids. One of the means to prevent their insufficient intake is supplementation of food products with those components. Hence, an animal model study was undertaken in order to determine whether modification of diet composition in which whole-grain components (whole grains of wheat and maize) are isocalorically substituted with white flour and saccharose, and its complementary supplementation with B-group vitamins may trigger changes in the profile of fatty acids synthesized in liver of rats.
Material and methods. The study was conducted on 30 male rats aged 5 months. Group I was receiving the basal feed mixture (Labofed B), which contained among other things whole grains of wheat and maize. Groups II-III, in free access, were administered modified feed mixture in which 83.5% of wheat present in the basal diet was substituted with wheat flour, and 50% of maize – with saccharose. Contents of vitamin B₁ , B₂ ,B₆  and PP and basic chemical composition in the feed mixture are determined by HPLC method and the fatty acid profile with the modified Folch method using gas chromatography. Groups I and II were receiving water to drink, whereas the animals from group III were administered 25 ml of an aqueous solution of vitamins in the following doses: B₁ – 0.94 mg, B₂ – 0.48 mg, B₆ – 0.5 mg, PP – 1.9 mg. In group III – to supplement differences in contents of those vitamins between feed mixtures resulting from the exchange of components, which to some extent simulated the mode of supplementation in humans. Concentration of glucose was determined in blood serum and the amount of fat was determined with Soxhlet method in the dissected animals liver and the fatty acid profile with the modified Folch method using gas chromatography.
Results. While analysing the achieved results it was stated that the animals, despite comparable quantities of ingested feed, differed in their body weight gains reached in the course of the experiment. In contrast, both the liver mass and its fat content did not differ significantly between the analysed groups of animals. Further- more, livers of the animals fed the modified diet were characterised by a decreased sum of monoenoic fatty acids and an increased sum of polyenoic fatty acids, compared to the animals receiving the basal diet. The fatty acid composition determined in livers of the animals fed the modified diet and supplemented with B₁ ,B₂ , B₆  and PP vitamins did not differ significantly from that assayed in livers of the rats fed the modified diet.
Conclusions. Modification of diet composition, consisting of substituting whole grains of cereals with wheat flour and saccharose, and its complementary supplementation with B-group vitamins caused signifi- cantly higher body weight gains of the examined animals. Modification of diet composition had a signifi- cant effect on a decreased level of monoenoic and an increased level of polyenoic fatty acids in rat livers. Supplementation with B-group vitamins did not correct the changes in the fatty acid profile in rat livers caused by diet modification.