Plasma fatty acids patterns and hyperlipidemia: a prospective study

Background Individual fatty acids in plasma have been associated with blood lipids, including triglyceride, total cholesterol, and high density lipoprotein cholesterol. However, reports studying multiple fatty acids simultaneously are still fragmentary. Objectives We aimed to identify the individuals with certain fatty acids pattern whose blood lipids were more susceptible to change. Design One thousand nine hundred and seven Chinese were followed up for two years. Thirty three fatty acids in baseline plasma samples were measured with GC‐FID. iCluster analysis was used to classify the study subjects into subgroups according to fatty acids pattern. Logistic regression was used to explore the hyperlipidemia risk of the subjects with different fatty acids patterns. Results Four patterns were identified; correspondingly, four subgroups of subjects were classified: two for subjects with normal blood lipids and two for those with hyperlipidemia. Normal lipidemia (NL) subgroup 2 was characterized by the highest steric acid, very‐long‐chain saturated fatty acids (VLCSFA), and n‐3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFAs). Hyperlipidemia (HL) subgroup 2 had the highest myristic acid, de novo lipogenesis (DNL) fatty acids, α‐linolenic acid, and γ‐linolenic acid. NL‐subgroup 1 and HL‐subgroup 1 were similar in fatty acids patterns and had the middle level of these fatty acids. NL‐subgroup 1 had 61% higher risk of suffering from hyperlipidemia than NL‐subgroup 2 (RR=1.61, 95% CI=1.29–2.02). HL‐subgroup 1 had 46% higher probability of returning to normal‐lipidemia than HL‐subgroup 2 (RR=1.46, 95% CI=1.13–1.90). Conclusion Subjects with fatty acids pattern featured with higher DNL fatty acids and alpha‐linolenic acid, but lower VLCSFAs and n‐3 LCPUFAs, had more dynamic blood lipids. Intervention might be more effective on these subjects. Support or Funding Information 100 talented plan of Chinese Academy of Sciences