Myocardial Changes in Monkeys Fed Mustard Oil

Abstract

Three groups, each of eight adult male monkeys were maintained for a little over 1 year on diets containing 20% mustard oil, peanut oil or hydrogenated peanut fat, respectively. Animals of the mustard oil group showed sarcoplasmic vacuolation of right and left ventricular myocardium. Half the number of monkeys also exhibited a variable degree of myocardial fibrosis which involved the subepicardial zone of the right ventricular wall between the tricuspid valve and apical region. That these changes were not the manifestations of a high fat intake per se was shown by the absence of such changes in the hearts of the animals consuming similar amounts of peanut oil or hydrogenated peanut fat. The results indicated the possible hazards of consuming diets rich in mustard oil for prolonged periods, which like rapeseed oil contains high amounts of erucic acid.

Effect of Feeding Different Levels of Mustard Oil in Monkeys

“…The body weights of all monkeys were recorded once every 2 weeks. Other de tails regarding the housing, etc., were similar to those reported in our earlier communica tion (7).…”

Long-Term Exposure to Docosenoic Acids in Animals: Absence of Myocardial Lesions in Harp Seals (Pagophilus Groenlandicus) and Grey Seals (Halichoerus Grypus)

“…Sci. 592 247-254 (June 1979) non-human primates (Ackman and Loew 1977;Ackman et al 1911b;Forsyth et al 1977 ;Loew et al 197 7, 1978;Schiefer et al 1978), although not universally in agreement with other findings (Beare-Rogers and Nera 1972; Vodovar et al 1913;Gopalan et al 1974), suggest that myocardial effects attributed to docosenoic acids may be of questionable significance in non-rodents (Christophersen et al 1976). …”

Effects of Plant and Animal Lipids Rich in Docosenoic Acids on the Myocardium of Cynomolgus Monkeys

“…A mustard oil (from Brassica juncea) containing 40-44% erucic (ds-docos-13-enoic) acid was reported to have resulted in histologic changes in the hearts of male bonnet monkeys (Macaca radiata) fed a diet which contained 20% (w/w) mustard oil (20). This work followed reports of lipidosis and focal inflammatory lesions in the hearts of weanling, male rats fed iapeseed (Brassica spp.)…”

“…25%) in erucic acid which is no longer used commercially in Canada. In this way, two different sources of dietary 22:1 were compared, as an extension of a previously reported, longer study of a mustard oil (20); the question is whether 22:1 itself, a specific isomer, or the complete oil is involved in the observed effects.…”