Palmitoleic Acid Helps Treat Hypertriglyceridemia

CLEVELAND—Purified palmitoleic acid may help treat hypertriglyceridemia, decreasing low density-lipoprotein (LDL) and high-sensitivity (hs)-CRP, while also raising high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels. (Journal of Clinical Lipidology. 2014, Oct; Online)

In the study by Drs. Michael F. Roizen, M.D., and Adam M. Bernstein M.D., of the Wellness Institute of the Cleveland Clinic, 60 healthy participants supplemented with purified palmitoleic acid for 30 days. Tersus Pharmaceuticals of Cleveland funded the study and provided capsules of their branded, purified omega-7 palmitoleic acid, Provinal®, for use in the study, as well as the placebo capsules.

Adults with dyslipidemia and evidence of mild systemic inflammation (high-sensitivity C-reactive protein [hs-CRP] between 2 and 5 mg/L) were randomly allocated to receive either 220.5 mg/d of Provinal or an identical capsule with placebo (1000 mg of medium chain triglycerides, n 5 30) for 30 days. Participants were asked to maintain their current diet. Serum lipids and hs-CRP were drawn at baseline and study completion (30 days).

At 30 days, there were significant mean (95-percent confidence interval [CI]) reductions in CRP (21.9 [22.3 to 21.4] mg/L), triglyceride (230.2 [240.2 to 225.3] mg/dL), and LDL (28.9 [212.0 to 25.8] mg/dL), and a significant increase in HDL (2.4 [1.5, 3.3] mg/dL) levels in the intervention group compared to control. These changes equated to 44 percent, 15 percent and 8 percent reductions in CRP, triglyceride, and LDL, respectively, and a 5 percent increase in HDL compared to control.

In addition, purified palmitoleic acid exerted potent anti-inflammatory and lipid-modulating effects compared with placebo. These findings build on a growing body of in vitro, animal, and human studies, demonstrating the importance of palmitoleic acid to regulating metabolism.

Last month, Tersus Pharmaceuticals received a Compositions and Methods U.S. Patent for Provinal.