Effects of diet, smoking, and chronic alcohol misuse on plasma lipid profiles and n-6 essential fatty acid metabolism in males and females
- 1Office of Scientific Director, Division of Intramural Clinical and Biological Research, National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse, Bethesda, MD, USA
- 2Laboratory of Liver Diseases, National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse, Bethesda, MD, USA
- 3School of Social and Community Medicine, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
Abstract
Smoking and alcohol misuse are associated with reductions in long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA). We investigated plasma fatty acid (FA) profiles and in vivo n-6 PUFA metabolism in male and female participants who either smoked or did not smoke cigarettes. Participants followed self-selected (SS), fish-based (FB), and beef-based (BB) diets for 3 weeks each. Participants diagnosed with an alcohol use disorder (AUD) were included. Individuals received 2H5-18:2n-6 ethyl ester orally. Endogenous FA were analyzed using gas chromatography and the 2H5-n-6 PUFA by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. The concentration-time curves for the 2H5-n-6 PUFA were fit to a compartmental model. Among nonsmoking individuals, the FB diet elevated plasma 20:5n-3 and 22:6n-3 by 2.5-fold. This was not observed in smokers. Male smokers had higher plasma FA levels on both the SS and BB diets compared to nonsmokers and heightened synthesis of 2H5-20:4n-6. In female smokers, 2H5-20:4n-6 synthesis was suppressed on SS diets. In AUD males, plasma n-3 PUFA were lower compared to smokers, and both AUD males and females had diminished synthesis of 2H5-20:4n-6 compared to smokers. In smokers, turnover of plasma 20:4n-6 was lower relative to nonsmokers. In AUD males, turnover of 18:2n-6 and 20:4n-6 were also lower compared to smokers. Smoking had a major impact on FA profiles in males, but the effects on n-6 PUFA metabolism between males and females were diverse. The FB diet did not elevate plasma n-3 PUFA in smokers compared with nonsmokers. Smoking and alcohol use profoundly altered plasma lipids and n-6 PUFA metabolism in male and female subjects.
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BibTeX
@article{pawlosky2026effects,
title = {{Effects of diet, smoking, and chronic alcohol misuse on plasma lipid profiles and n-6 essential fatty acid metabolism in males and females}},
author = {Robert J. Pawlosky and Yu-Hong Lin and Joseph R. Hibbeln and Norman Salem},
journal = {Journal of Lipid Research},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1016/j.jlr.2026.101134},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jlr.2026.101134},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Effects of diet, smoking, and chronic alcohol misuse on plasma lipid profiles and n-6 essential fatty acid metabolism in males and females
AU - Robert J. Pawlosky
AU - Yu-Hong Lin
AU - Joseph R. Hibbeln
AU - Norman Salem
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/25
JO - Journal of Lipid Research
DO - 10.1016/j.jlr.2026.101134
UR - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jlr.2026.101134
AB - Smoking and alcohol misuse are associated with reductions in long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA). We investigated plasma fatty acid (FA) profiles and in vivo n-6 PUFA metabolism in male and female participants who either smoked or did not smoke cigarettes. Participants followed self-selected (SS), fish-based (FB), and beef-based (BB) diets for 3 weeks each. Participants diagnosed with an alcohol use disorder (AUD) were included. Individuals received 2H5-18:2n-6 ethyl ester orally. Endogenous FA were analyzed using gas chromatography and the 2H5-n-6 PUFA by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. The concentration-time curves for the 2H5-n-6 PUFA were fit to a compartmental model. Among nonsmoking individuals, the FB diet elevated plasma 20:5n-3 and 22:6n-3 by 2.5-fold. This was not observed in smokers. Male smokers had higher plasma FA levels on both the SS and BB diets compared to nonsmokers and heightened synthesis of 2H5-20:4n-6. In female smokers, 2H5-20:4n-6 synthesis was suppressed on SS diets. In AUD males, plasma n-3 PUFA were lower compared to smokers, and both AUD males and females had diminished synthesis of 2H5-20:4n-6 compared to smokers. In smokers, turnover of plasma 20:4n-6 was lower relative to nonsmokers. In AUD males, turnover of 18:2n-6 and 20:4n-6 were also lower compared to smokers. Smoking had a major impact on FA profiles in males, but the effects on n-6 PUFA metabolism between males and females were diverse. The FB diet did not elevate plasma n-3 PUFA in smokers compared with nonsmokers. Smoking and alcohol use profoundly altered plasma lipids and n-6 PUFA metabolism in male and female subjects.
SN - 0022-2275
SN - 1539-7262
ER -