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Tocopherols in Seafood and Aquaculture Products.

Critical reviews in food science and nutrition
January 1, 2016
Cláudia Afonso et al. (4 authors)
Journal ArticleReviewHuman Study
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to review the role and mechanisms of tocopherols in seafood and aquaculture products, focusing on their nutritional benefits, absorption, and physiological effects.

Results Summary

The study found that tocopherols in fish are absorbed via passive diffusion and transported through two loops, with levels correlating with diet. Tocopherols act as antioxidants, enhance lipid stability, and may prevent heart disease when consumed via food, though high concentrations could have prooxidant effects under certain conditions.

Population

General human population, with specific relevance to farmed fish species.

Effective Dosage

Not specified

Duration

Not specified

Interactions

Synergistic interactions with selenium and ascorbic acid were noted.

Extracted Claims (9)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
tocopherols
increase
tocopherol levels
fish organisms
-
correlate with diet levels
#1
insufficient levels of tocopherols in the diet
decrease
growth performance
farmed fish species
-
can lead to
#2
insufficient levels of tocopherols in the diet
increase
nutritional disease
farmed fish species
-
can lead to
#3
α-tocopherol at higher concentrations when prooxidants such as transition metals are present
increase
prooxidant synergist
-
-
may behave as
#4
tocopherols
decrease
prooxidant effect
-
-
outweighs
#5
higher levels of tocopherol
increase
lipid stability
muscle-based foods
-
show
#6
tocopherols taken with food
decrease
heart disease
-
-
can prevent
#7
α-tocopherol as supplement
no change
heart disease prevention
-
-
no such evidence was found for
#8
eating fish
increase
recommended dietary allowance
-
nearly 14%
may provide
#9
Abstract

Fish products contain various nutritionally beneficial components, namely, ω3-polyunsaturated fatty acids (ω3-PUFA), minerals, and vitamins. Particularly, tocopherols (α-, β-, γ-, and δ-tocopherol) can be provided by seafood and aquaculture products. Hence, this review shows the various aspects of tocopherols in seafood and aquaculture products. For tocopherol determination in these products, HPLC methods coupled with diode array detection in the UV area of the spectrum or fluorescence detection have been shown as sensitive and accurate. These newest methods have helped in understanding tocopherols fate upon ingestion by seafood organisms. Tocopherols pass through the intestinal mucosa mainly by the same passive diffusion mechanism as fats. After absorption, the transport mechanism is thought to consist of two loops. The first loop is dietary, including chylomicrons and fatty acids bound to carrier protein, transporting lipids mainly to the liver. The other is the transport from the liver to tissues and storage sites. Moreover, tocopherol levels in fish organisms correlate with diet levels, being adjusted in fish body depending on diet concentration. For farmed fish species, insufficient levels of tocopherols in the diet can lead to poor growth performance or to nutritional disease. The tocopherol quantity needed as a feed supplement depends on various factors, such as the vitamer mixture, the lipid level and source, the method of diet preparation, and the feed storage conditions. Other ingredients in diet may be of great importance, it has been proposed that α-tocopherol may behave as a prooxidant synergist at higher concentrations when prooxidants such as transition metals are present. However, the antioxidant action of tocopherols outweighs this prooxidant effect, provided that adequate conditions are used. In fact, muscle-based foods containing higher levels of tocopherol show, for instance, higher lipid stability. Besides, tocopherols are important not only from the nutritional point of view but also from the physiological one, since they are involved in many metabolic processes in the human organism. Moreover, synergistic interactions with selenium and ascorbic acid have been reported. It deserves attention that there is evidence tocopherols taken with food can prevent heart disease, while no such evidence was found for α-tocopherol as supplement. From this perspective, eating fish is advisable, since, for instance, a 100 g serving of salmon may provide nearly 14% of recommended dietary allowance.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
AnimalsAntioxidantsAquacultureAquatic OrganismsFish ProductsFishesFood HandlingFood StorageFunctional FoodHumansNutrition PolicyNutritive ValueSeafoodShellfishTocopherols
Study Links
Quality Scores
Safety85
Efficacy75/10
Quality70/10
Citation Metrics
Total Citations20
Citations/Year2.2
Relative Citation Ratio1.14
NIH Percentile55%
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.05
Weight Score0.86
Normalized Score0.78
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