Fat intolerance causes high concentrations of triglycerides in blood after meals, which is considered a cardiovascular disease risk factorFat intolerance causes high concentrations of triglycerides in blood after meals, which is considered a cardiovascular disease risk factor. Current methods to assess this risk are relatively slow, as they need about 12 hours to obtain results. Also, with these methods it is not easy to know exactly when the maximum blood triglyceride concentration peak will be reached.
The Instituto de la Grasa of the CSIC and the University of Sevilla have developed a procedure that enables a faster and easier oral lipid tolerance test. Its main element is an emulsified composition of water and saturated fat, which is administered in doses that depend on the patient's body volume.
Two hours after, the peak of triglycerides in the patient’s blood is reached. This emulsion is easy to swallow and digest, even for people with swallowing difficulties. It has a mono-modal behavior (the drops of the dispersed phase have a homogeneous size) and it is stable over time.
The use of this emulsion reduces by half the time to reach the peak of triglycerides in blood. Also, the time for the fats to disappear from blood shortens from eight to four hours.
The method is useful for identifying abnormalities in the acute metabolism of triglyceride-rich lipoproteins after ingestion of lipids, which may be associated with cardiovascular pathology. The scientific team is now looking for companies interested in the application of the technology under a patent license.
Contact:
Chelo Quilchano Gonzalo
Instituto de la Grasa
Consejo Superior de Investigaciones
Científicas (CSIC)
Tel.: 954 61 15 50
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