A rapid method for determining arachidonic:eicosapentaenoic acid ratios in whole blood lipids: correlation with erythrocyte membrane ratios and validation in a large Italian population of various ages and pathologies

Table 1 The fatty acid profiles (% composition) of whole blood lipids in subjects from an Italian population not consuming omega-3 supplements and arranged according to age

%	Under 20 years (15-20)		21-40 years		41-60 years		Over 60 years (61-81)
n	19		103		127		51
	Mean	S.E.	Mean	S.E.	Mean	S.E.	Mean	S.E.
C16:0 *	21.634	0.535	22.226	0.295	22.779	0.194	23.441	0.343
C16:1**	1.252	0.228	1.392	0.066	1.438	0.064	1.945	0.140
C18:0	12.321	0.547	11.197	0.259	11.364	0.170	10.836	0.251
C18:1**	22.154	0.823	23.959	0.385	23.537	0.330	25.728	0.600
C18:2n-6 (LA)**	23.089	0.735	22.155	0.347	21.795	0.371	19.527	0.463
C18:3n-3 (ALA)	0.431	0.036	0.451	0.028	0.450	0.023	0.477	0.030
C20:3n-6	2.098	0.117	1.932	0.056	1.860	0.060	2.174	0.289
C20:4n-6* (AA)	12.145	0.454	11.412	0.200	11.064	0.171	10.690	0.280
C20:5 n-3 (EPA)	0.670	0.093	1.022	0.111	1.132	0.077	1.040	0.090
C22:5n-3 (DPA)	1.381	0.106	1.264	0.048	1.266	0.044	1.203	0.060
C22:6n-3 (DHA)	2.825	0.293	2.989	0.100	3.315	0.115	2.940	0.150
tot ω-6**	37.332	0.845	35.499	0.403	34.719	0.381	32.391	0.624
tot ω-3	5.307	0.394	5.727	0.197	6.163	0.198	5.659	0.240

ISSN: 1476-511X