Volume 89, Issue 4, April (2003), pp. 517-523 © The Author 2003
doi:10.1079/BJN2002815

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The effect of dietary n-3 fatty acids on serum concentrations of C-reactive protein: a dose–response study

Trine Madsen^1,*, Jeppe H. Christensen², Mogens Blom³ and Erik B. Schmidt^1
1Department of Cardiology, Aalborg Hospital, Denmark
²Department of Nephrology, Aalborg Hospital, Denmark
³Department of Clinical Biochemistry, Hjørring/Brønderslev Hospital, Denmark

 (Received 10 May 2002–Revised 14 November 2002–Accepted 26 November 2002)

C-reactive protein (CRP) is a sensitive marker for low-grade inflammation. Long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) have anti-inflammatory effects. The objective of the present study was to investigate the effect on serum levels of CRP of n-3 PUFA at two different doses. We also investigated correlations between CRP and the cellular contents of PUFA. Sixty healthy volunteers (twenty-five women and thirty-five men) were randomly assigned to three treatment groups in a double-blind design. The subjects received a supplement of either 6·6 g n-3 PUFA/d, 2·0 g n-3 PUFA/d or placebo (olive oil) for 12 weeks. CRP was measured using a highly sensitive assay. The median serum CRP concentration was 0·78 mg/l. No significant correlations were found between CRP and the content of n-3 PUFA in granulocytes or platelets. Subjects receiving n-3 PUFA had a significant (P<0·01) increase in the cellular contents of 20 : 5n-3, 22 : 5n-3 and 22 : 6n-3, with the largest increase occurring in the group receiving 6·6 g PUFA/d. A significant (P<0·01) decrease in cellular content of 18 : 2n-6 and 20 : 4n-6 was observed simultaneously. Serum CRP concentrations, however, were unaffected by the PUFA-containing supplements. The present study shows that dietary supplementation with PUFA-containing supplements has no effect on serum concentrations of CRP, measured with a highly sensitive assay, in healthy subjects.

Abbreviations: CRP; C-reactive protein; hs; highly sensitive; PUFA; polyunsaturated fatty acid
Corresponding Author: Dr Trine Madsen, fax +45 99322361, email tmadsen@dadlnet.dk

Keywords:
Fatty acids: Fish oil: Inflammation: C-reactive protein