We studied linoleic acid Δ5 and dihomo-γ-linolenic acid Δ5 desaturations, and fatty
acid composition, of liver microsomes in the insulin-dependent spontaneously diabetic
adult female BB rat. These desaturations were defective along the normo- and hyper-glycemic
period and restored during the hypoglycemic period which followed the insulin injection
to the diabetic rats. The fatty acid composition of BB rats microsomes was not consistent
with the desaturase activities at the different periods of glycemia, probably because
other factors than desaturation impairments were involved in the evolution of fatty
acid composition.
Spontaneous Diabetes - BB Rats - Insulin - Δ6 Desaturase - Δ5 Desaturase - Liver -
Microsomes - Fatty Acids
