Abstract
Rats of four groups were fed vitamin E deficient or supplemented diets containing 5.6 or 15.6% linoleic acid for 100 days. The rats fed vitamin E deficient diets displayed signs of vitamin E deficiency as shown in erythrocytes hemolysis value and blood tocopherol content. The rats fed vitamin E supplemented (2mg/100g) diet containing 15.6% linoleic acid displayed borderline deficiency signs. The amounts of lipid peroxides in blood and liver were higher in rats fed vitamin E deficient diets and were significantly increased by dietary linoleic acid. Morphologically the most striking changes in the hepatocytes of vitamin E deficient rats were occurrence of large numbers of microbodies. lysosomes. lipofuscin. lipid droplets and enlarged mitochondria. The number of micro-bodies per hepatocyte increased and was 1.5 times greater than that in E-supplemented rats. The mitochondria were enlarged with dense matrix and indistinct outer membrane. The number of lysosomes and microbodies were further increased in the hepatocytes of rats fed vitamin E deficient diets containing 15.6% linoleic acid. Peroxidase reaction product was histochemically found in microbodies and in a rim of lipid droplets. Acid phosphatase reaction was found in primary lysosomes and weak reaction in the matrix of residual bodies or lipofuscin. The increases in activities of peroxidase and acid phosphatase in hepatocytes of rats fed vitamin E deficient diet containing linoleic acid appear to be in response to the increased lipid peroxidation which occurred in the liver of these rats.
