Ahiflower® oil is high in α-linolenic and stearidonic acids, however, tissue/blood docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n-3) turnover from dietary Ahiflower oil has not been investigated. In this study, we use compound-specific isotope analysis to determine tissue DHA synthesis/turnover from Ahiflower, flaxseed and DHA oils. Pregnant BALB/c mice (13–17 days) were placed on a 2 % algal DHA oil diet of high carbon-13 content (δ¹³C) and pups (n = 132) were maintained on the diet until 9 weeks old. Mice were then randomly allocated to a low δ¹³C-n-3 PUFA diet of either: 1) 4 % Ahiflower oil, 2) 4.35 % flaxseed oil or 3) 1 % fish DHA ethyl ester oil for 1, 3, 7, 14, 30, 60 or 120 days (n = 6). Serum, liver, adipose and brains were collected and DHA levels and δ¹³C were determined. DHA concentrations were highest (p < 0.05) in the liver and adipose of DHA-fed animals with no diet differences in serum or brain (p > 0.05). Based on the presence or absence of overlapping 95 % C.I.'s, DHA half-lives and synthesis/turnover rates were not different between Ahiflower and DHA diets in the liver, adipose or brain. DHA half-lives and synthesis/turnover rates from flaxseed oil were significantly slower than from the DHA diet in all serum/tissues. These findings suggest that the distinct Ahiflower oil n-3 PUFA composition could support tissue DHA needs at a similar rate to dietary DHA, making it a unique plant-based dietary option for maintaining DHA turnover comparably to dietary DHA.

Ahiflower® 油富含 α-亚麻酸和十八碳四烯酸，但是，膳食 Ahiflower 油中组织/血液二十二碳六烯酸 (DHA, 22:6n-3) 的转化尚未进行研究。在这项研究中，我们使用化合物特异性同位素分析来确定 Ahiflower、亚麻籽和 DHA 油的组织 DHA 合成/周转率。怀孕的 BALB/c 小鼠（13-17 天）接受高碳 13 含量 (δ ¹³ C) 的 2% 藻 DHA 油饮食，幼仔 ( n  = 132) 一直维持该饮食直至 9 周龄。然后将小鼠随机分配至低 δ ¹³ C-n-3 PUFA 饮食：1) 4% Ahiflower 油，2) 4.35% 亚麻籽油或 3) 1% 鱼 DHA 乙酯油，分别为 1、3、7、14、 30、60 或 120 天（n  = 6）。收集血清、肝脏、脂肪和脑并测定DHA水平和δ ^{13 C。} DHA喂养动物的肝脏和脂肪中的 DHA浓度最高 ( p < 0.05)，而血清或大脑中没有饮食差异 ( p  > 0.05)。根据重叠 95% CI 是否存在，Ahiflower 和 DHA 饮食在肝脏、脂肪或大脑中的 DHA 半衰期和合成/周转率没有差异。在所有血清/组织中，亚麻籽油中的 DHA 半衰期和合成/周转率均明显慢于 DHA 饮食。这些研究结果表明，独特的 Ahiflower 油 n-3 PUFA 成分可以以与膳食 DHA 相似的速度支持组织 DHA 需求，使其成为一种独特的植物性饮食选择，可与膳食 DHA 保持 DHA 周转率。