Comparative effect of dietary olive, safflower, and linseed oils on spontaneous liver tumorigenesis in C3H/He mice.

In male C3H/He mice, which frequently develop spontaneous liver tumorigenesis, 5 wk of age and weighing about 20 g, the comparative effects on liver tumor incidence from the feeding of olive oil (OLI), safflower oil (SAF), and linseed oil (LIS) diets for 50 wk, the concentrations of total cholesterol (T-CHOL), triacylglycerol (TG), lipid peroxides in the plasma and liver, and the activities of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) in the plasma were examined. The changes in body weight and liver weight were not different among dietary groups. The number of mice bearing liver adenoma was greater in the SAF group than in the OLI and LIS groups. Liver carcinoma was observed in the SAF group, but not in the OLI and LIS groups. The concentrations of T-CHOL in the plasma and liver were higher in the OLI group than in the other groups. TG levels in the plasma and liver were highest in the OLI group and followed in order by the SAF and LIS groups. The concentration of plasma lipid peroxide was higher in the LIS group than in the other groups. Liver lipid peroxide content was extremely high in the LIS group, medium in the SAF group, and low in the OLI group. The activity of AST was highest in the OLI group and followed in order by the SAF and LIS groups. ALT activity was higher in the OLI group than in the other groups. A positive relationship between spontaneous liver tumorigenesis and the concentrations of T-CHOL, TG, and lipid peroxide or AST and ALT activities was hardly observed. These results suggested that spontaneous tumorigenesis in the liver of male C3H/He mice bred for 50 wk was suppressed by being supplied with OLI and LIS, compared with SAF, which had no direct relation to the concentrations of T-CHOL, TG, and lipid peroxide in the plasma and liver and the activities of plasma AST and ALT.