Soybean oil and coconut oil enhance the absorption of chlorogenic acid in humans

Abstract

The effect of a mainly polyunsaturated oil (soybean oil) and a mainly medium chain triglyceride oil (coconut oil) on the absorption of the phenolic antioxidant chlorogenic acid (5‐caffeoylquinic acid) was investigated using 90 healthy volunteers. Serum concentrations and the absorbed percentages of chlorogenic acid of volunteers who received chlorogenic acid without oils (0.006 ± 0.001 mg/ml, 5.7 ± 0.2%), chlorogenic acid with soybean oil (0.012 ± 0.001 mg/ml, 11.8 ± 1.3%), and chlorogenic acid with coconut oil (0.067 ± 0.014 mg/ml, 65.6 ± 18.1%) were significantly different from each other (p < .05). There was a strong positive correlation between the increase in serum and plasma antioxidant capacity and the absorption of chlorogenic acid. The major fatty acid of each of soybean oil and coconut oil also improved the permeability of chlorogenic acid in Caco‐2 cell monolayers. The results suggest that the tested edible oils may improve the nutritional value of chlorogenic acid‐containing foods by improving the absorption of chlorogenic acid. Practical applications Small polar antioxidants such as phenolic acids and flavonoids are poorly absorbed through the intestinal epithelium. Chlorogenic acid was used in the present study as a model for small polar phenolic antioxidants. According to the present study, soybean oil with mainly polyunsaturated fatty acids and coconut oil with mainly medium chain fatty acids improve the absorption of these antioxidants. These findings suggest that proper planning of diets or food supplements containing phenolic antioxidants with medium chain or polyunsaturated fatty acid‐rich edible oils may enhance the nutritional benefits expected from phenolic antioxidants.

Saturated fatty acids differently affect mitochondrial function and the intestinal epithelial barrier depending on their chain length in the in vitro model of IPEC-J2 enterocytes

“…Several in vitro ( Lindmark et al, 1998 ; Gulhane et al, 2016 ; Ghezzal et al, 2020 ; Gori et al, 2020 ; Weerakoon et al, 2021 ) as well as in vivo ( Cani et al, 2009 ; Hamilton et al, 2015 ; Nascimento et al, 2021 ) studies have shown that high concentrations of fatty acid consumption/treatment increase paracellular permeability, indicating diminished epithelial barrier integrity in association with decreased expression of genes encoding tight junction proteins. Weerakoon et al (2021) showed in vitro that C12:0 at 3 mM increased the translocation of chlorogenic acid compared to control on Caco-2 cells, suggesting enhanced intestinal permeability induced by C12:0. These results are strengthened by Lindmark et al who demonstrated that C12:0 exhibited a dose-dependent effect on the passage of hydrophilic compounds across the Caco-2 monolayer ( Lindmark et al, 1995 ; Lindmark et al, 1998 ).…”

Reduction of lauric acid content in virgin coconut oil improved plasma lipid profile in high‐fat diet‐induced hypercholesterolemic mice

“…The pharmacological actions of these polyphenols were widely reported in both in vitro (Illam et al, 2021(Illam et al, , 2017 and in vivo studies (Famurewa et al, 2021;Nevin & Rajamohan, 2004;Vysakh et al, 2014;Yeap et al, 2015). In addition, as polyphenols are poorly absorbed through the gastrointestinal tract, the beneficial effect of VCO could also be due to its ability to improve the absorption of these phenolic compounds, thus enhancing their bioavailability and pharmacological actions (Prasadani et al, 2017;Weerakoon et al, 2021). The enhancement of polyphenol absorption may involve the influence of lauric acid in coconut oil on intestinal lipase activity, portal absorption, triglyceride (TG), lipoprotein, or cholesterol flux between liver and peripheral tissues, resulting in the modulation of the uptake and transport of phenolic compounds (Nidhi et al, 2014).…”