Raising dietary intake and circulating levels of C15:0, an essential fatty acid, improved liver health among young adults with overweight and obesity.
SAN DIEGO, Aug. 6, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- A highly anticipated clinical trial was just published by the prestigious Journal of Nutrition with a surprising finding: that C15:0, a trace dietary saturated fat present in butter, can lower liver enzymes in young adults susceptible to fatty liver disease.
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), also referred to as Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease (MASLD), is a metabolic liver condition involving excess fat deposition in the liver that can progress to extensive liver inflammation, cell damage, and cirrhosis. While the first cases of advanced NAFLD were observed in 1980, today this condition affects 1 in 3 people globally, including 1 in 10 children. Fatty liver disease is a leading cause of liver cancer, liver transplants, and more recently, cardiovascular deaths.
A prior clinical trial had shown that supplementation with pure C15:0, the first essential fatty acid to be discovered in almost 100 years, supported healthy LDL cholesterol levels, improved the gut microbiome, and led to the best improvements in lowered body fat, liver fat, and liver enzymes - above and beyond the benefits of caloric restriction and the Mediterranean diet.
The latest clinical trial adds to mounting evidence that nutritional C15:0 deficiency, called Cellular Fragility Syndrome, accelerates cellular aging and contributes to the onset and progression of chronic conditions, including fatty liver disease. Unfortunately, the past 50 years' avoidance of dairy fat has led to population-wide decreases in C15:0 levels.
"This study is an important step in confirming that C15:0 supplementation can effectively raise circulating C15:0 levels, potentially leading to improvements in metabolic health," shared Dr. Jeffrey Schwimmer, senior author of the clinical trial and a global leader in pediatric fatty liver disease research. "While many questions remain, particularly regarding the optimal dosage and application in conditions like fatty liver disease, our findings indicate that C15:0 may have a role in managing the underlying metabolic dysfunction common among some patients with liver disease, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease."
Previously, Dr. Schwimmer had published a study including 237 children that showed those with higher C15:0 levels had lower fat in their livers.
The most recent randomized, double-blinded and placebo controlled clinical trial included 30 young adults (18 to 24 years old) with overweight or obesity, who actively avoided whole dairy fat. This study population had average baseline liver enzyme levels (ALT and AST) that were elevated, indicative of impaired liver function.
Study participants took a pure C15:0 supplement (fatty15) for 12 weeks. The C15:0 supplemented group demonstrated a significant increase in C15:0 levels and lower gamma glutamyl transferase (GGT) levels, a liver enzyme. Further, study participants who were supplemented with C15:0 and achieved plasma C15:0 levels above the definition of nutritional C15:0 deficiency also had lowered liver enzyme levels (ALT and AST), indicative of improved liver health. These beneficial effects were not observed in the control group.
"Dr. Schwimmer's clinical trial is an important milestone for the growing movement to fix C15:0 deficiencies and restore global health," said Dr. Stephanie Venn-Watson, Seraphina Therapeutics' co-founder and CEO. "There is an increasingly urgent need to revisit current nutritional guidelines around saturated fats, especially odd-chain saturated fats, to help people maintain healthy C15:0 levels and protect their long-term health."
Dr. Venn-Watson's initial discoveries on the importance of C15:0, which were made while helping to continually improve the health of aging dolphins with fatty liver disease, is a featured TEDx talk. Seraphina Therapeutics' scientific advancement of C15:0 has been awarded the 2024 Overall Supplement of the Year by Mindful Awards, is a 2024 Fast Company World Changing Idea in Wellness, and a top 2024 Healthy Aging Ingredient by NutraIngredients.
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About Seraphina Therapeutics. Inc.
Seraphina Therapeutics, Inc. is a health and wellness company dedicated to advancing global health through the discovery of essential fatty acids and micronutrient therapeutics. Through rigorous breakthrough science, the company develops fatty acid supplements, food fortifiers, and nutritional interventions to strengthen cells, keep mitochondria working and advance cellular homeostasis to counter age-related breakdown. With its team of industry-leading scientists, Seraphina Therapeutics challenges long-held approaches to nutrition, enabling the creation of novel health products designed to support quality of life. For more information, please visit DiscoverC15.com and fatty15.com.
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SOURCE Fatty15
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