Medium- and long-chain triglycerides labeled with ¹³C: A comparison of oxidation after oral or parenteral administration in humans

The special physical properties of medium-chain triglycerides (MCT) result in some substantial differences in their metabolism compared to that of long-chain triglycerides (LCT). Administering MCT is of importance in enteral nutrition of patients with disturbances of fat digestion or lipoprotein lipase deficiency. Their use in parenteral nutrition is also of interest. The purpose of this study was to compare the rate of conversion of MCT and LCT to CO₂ after parenteral or oral administration in humans. At 1-wk intervals, a liquid formula diet (418 kJ/h for 8 h) was given to five healthy volunteers following an overnight fast. Two hours after starting this, they were given either 100 mg [¹³C]trioctanoate or [¹³C]trioleate orally or parenterally. Excess ¹³C in breath carbon dioxide was analyzed by mass-spectrometry, and oxidation rates over 7.5 h were calculated. Oxidation rates for [¹³C]trioctanoate were on the average 34.7% after enteral and 31.0% after parenteral administration, and for [¹³C]trioleate, 25.3 and 24.9%, respectively (p < 0.05, trioctanoate vs. trioleate). The results show that the oxidation of trioctanoate in healthy humans is greater both after oral and parenteral administration and increases more rapidly than that of [¹³C]trioleate.