Evaluation of potential inflammatory and antiobesogenic effects of interesterified lipids with different contents of long-chain saturated fatty acids

• Grant number: 25/09554-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate (Direct)
• Start date: July 01, 2025
• End date: July 31, 2028
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Food Science and Technology - Food Science
• Principal Investigator: Gabriela Alves Macedo
• Grantee: Alice da Silva Malveira
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Engenharia de Alimentos (FEA). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 20/07015-7 - PBIS - Integrated Biotechnological Platform of Healthy Ingredients, AP.NPOP

Abstract

The increase in the prevalence of Obesity and Chronic Noncommunicable Diseases in Brazil and the world has been explained by several factors, among them: changes in food consumption patterns, through the frequent consumption of excess fat in the diet. Postprandial hyperlipemia induces an acute inflammatory stimulus that can progress to chronic inflammation, as well as increases the risk for cardiovascular diseases and is associated with obesity, metabolic syndrome, and type 2 diabetes. Described results, led our research group to study new processes of biotechnological synthesis of functional lipids. Structured lipids are triacylglycerols that accompany changes in the distribution of foods esterified in glycerol through interesterification, obtaining lipid bases with nutritional and technological benefits. The synthesis of a lipid with an anti-obesogenic effect has been studied in our research group, using a mixture of peanut oil as a source of monounsaturated fatty supplements, soybean oil as a source of polyunsaturated foods and fully hydrogenated crambe as a source of behenic acid. Preliminary results of the postprandial effect of the consumption of this controlled lipid in mice have already been obtained. This project proposes to explore the inflammatory and antiobesogenic impact caused by the chronic ingestion of this new chemically interesterified lipid in an animal model.