Preliminary studies of elaboration, acceptability and nutritional quality of formulations rich in omega-3 fatty acids for their use in experimental murine models

COLUSSI NARELLA; ROMERO PATRICIA; TODARO, JUAN SANTIAGO; MELANA COLAVITA, JUAN PABLO; AGUIRRE, ANDRES; GORBAN, SILVIA; AGUIRRE, MARIA VICTORIA

Buenos Aires

Congreso; iuns 21st International Congress of Nutrition; 2017

International Union of Nutritional Sciences

Background and objectives: Background: Basic metabolicresearch of chronic non transmissible diseases often needs the useof different diets in experimental animals, these must be designedfor being complete. Given the already observed functional effectsof Omega-3 fatty acids and their high content in chia seeds, it isinteresting to find a suitable method for their incorporation intothe murine diet. Objective: to evaluate the organoleptic characteristics,acceptability and nutritional quality of food rich in Omega-3 fatty acids in Balb-c mice from the Biotherium of Faculty ofMedicine, Universidad Nacional del Nordeste.Methods: Adult mice (2 months) of the Balb-c strain wereused. The protocol was approved by the Institutional Committeefor Care and Use of Experimental Animals. Mice were randomlydistributed in 4 lots with food and water ad-libitum. Experimentalgroups received a diet rich in Omega-3, while the control lots (A)were provided with a standard commercial feed for 15 days. Thediets were prepared manually with natural ingredients accordingto nutritional requirements: one formulation with egg proteins (B)and one with milk and egg (C).The semi-solid preparations were molded as standard pellets, which were: 1) dried in an oven for 2h at 80°C, and 2) autoclaved (103 kPa, 120ºC) 10 min and furtherdried 5 h at 40°C. Thus, the four diets were: B1, B2, C1, C2. Theevaluation of diets include: the organoleptic characteristics of thepellets, its acceptability and digestibility. Measurements involvedthe progression of mice body weight, the consumption of pelletsand the study of feces. Coprologic samples were analyzed withlight microscopy (40x).Results: The smell and color of the food were conventionaland similar among different groups. The diet with the greatest acceptabilitywas C. Animals fed with diet B decreased body weightin comparison with those fed with diet C, which maintained orincreased it similarly to controls.Conclusions: This study let us conclude that the best formulationof a pellet rich in Omega-3 from chia seeds is C1. Additionally,this work might be used for evaluating Omega-3 bioavailabilityin further settings for metabolic models of chronic non transmissiblediseases.