Toxicity of Air-Oxidized Soybean Oil

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Abstract
The toxicity of air-oxidized soybean oil to weanling rats was investigated in several aspects. Growth studies demonstrated that the concentration of the toxic principle corresponded closely to the peroxide concentration of the oil. Moreover, separation of the oxidized oil into high-, medium- and low-peroxide fractions revealed that toxicity again followed peroxide concentration. Histopathological examination of rats fed oxidized soybean oil gave generally negative findings but indicated that the intestine might be involved. Moreover, absorption of fatty acid peroxides in mature rats, studied by means of thoracic duct cannulation, indicated that although the reduced products of the peroxides were absorbed, the peroxides themselves were destroyed in the intestine and probably had their action at that site. Recovery from the effects of whole-body irradiation, a condition also affecting the intestine, was delayed by diets containing fat with peroxide numbers as low as 100. Inhibition of intestinal xanthine oxidase by air-oxidized soybean oil and its reversal by exogenous flavin adenine dinucleotide suggest that the specific toxicity of the lipid peroxides may be at the level of the intestinal enzymes.