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Dietary Bioactive Components

Category: Dietary Bioactive Components (I) (Poster Session)

Dietary Bioactive Components (I) (Poster Session)

(P20-22-26) Associations of Red Blood Cell Omega-6 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids With Biomarkers of Inflammation: A Cross-Sectional Analysis

Sunday, July 26, 2026
9:30 AM - 10:30 AM ET
Location: Poster Board D-42
Disclosure(s):
Kevin C. Maki, PhD: 89Bio: Advisory Committee/Board Member (Ongoing); Consultant (Ongoing)
ACH Food Companies: Consultant (Ongoing); Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Bragg Live Food Products: Advisory Committee/Board Member (Ongoing); Consultant (Ongoing)
Campbell's: Advisory Committee/Board Member (Ongoing); Consultant (Ongoing)
Cargill: Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Eli Lilly and Company: Advisory Committee/Board Member (Ongoing); Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Esperion Therapeutics: Advisory Committee/Board Member (Ongoing); Consultant (Ongoing); Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
General Mills Inc.: Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Global Organization for EPA and DHA: Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Greenyn Biotechnology: Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Hass Avocado Board: Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Helaina: Advisory Committee/Board Member (Ongoing); Consultant (Ongoing); Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Hershey: Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Indiana University Foundation: Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Lonza: Advisory Committee/Board Member (Ongoing); Consultant (Ongoing)
Matinas Biopharma: Advisory Committee/Board Member (Ongoing); Consultant (Ongoing); Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
MDLifespan: Advisory Committee/Board Member (Ongoing); Consultant (Ongoing); Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Medifast, Inc.: Advisory Committee/Board Member (Ongoing); Consultant (Ongoing); Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
National Cattlemen's Beef Association/Beef Checkoff: Advisory Committee/Board Member (Ongoing); Consultant (Ongoing); Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
National Dairy Council: Advisory Committee/Board Member (Ongoing); Consultant (Ongoing); Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Naturmega: Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
NewAmsterdam Pharma: Advisory Committee/Board Member (Ongoing); Consultant (Ongoing); Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
NorthSea Therapeutics: Advisory Committee/Board Member (Ongoing); Consultant (Ongoing)
Novo Nordisk: Advisory Committee/Board Member (Ongoing); Consultant (Ongoing); Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Pepsico: Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Pharmavite: Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Ro: Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Seed, Inc.: Advisory Committee/Board Member (Ongoing); Consultant (Ongoing)


Objectives: Observational evidence supports associations between higher intakes of omega-6 (n-6) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and lower risks for cardiometabolic diseases. Some have hypothesized that higher n-6 PUFA intake may be pro-inflammatory. Red blood cell (RBC) total n-6 PUFA and linoleic acid (LA) correlate with dietary LA intake. This cross-sectional analysis of baseline data from the Aegis cohort examined associations of RBC (OmegaQuant Analytics) total n-6 PUFA, LA, and arachidonic acid (AA) with biomarkers of inflammation.

Methods: Serum levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), glycoprotein acetyls (GA), serum amyloid A (SAA), soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (sICAM-1), and soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (sVCAM-1) were assessed. Univariate Pearson correlation and multivariate linear models were used to assess associations of biomarkers of inflammation with RBC fatty acids (FA), with age, body mass index, sex, diabetes, and n-3 FA as covariates.

Results: Analyses included 2102 participants for whom relevant biomarker data were available (64% female, mean age: 51 y, BMI: 29.2 kg/m2, 63% White, 12% Black/African American, 7% Hispanic/Latino, 18% mixed/other). RBC total n-6 PUFA (% of total FA) was significantly correlated with hs-CRP (r = 0.05; P = 0 .017), GA (r = -0.11; P < 0.001), and sVCAM-1 (r = -0.06; P = 0 .008). RBC LA was inversely correlated with all 5 biomarkers of inflammation (r values -0.13 to -0.22; all P < 0.001). RBC AA was positively correlated with hs-CRP, GA, SAA, and sICAM-1 (r values 0.08 to 0.14; all P < 0.001). The 20th and 80th percentiles, respectively, were 34% and 38% for total n-6 PUFA; 11% and 14% for LA; 15% and 18% for AA. Least squares mean (95% CI) for quintile (Q)1 and Q5, respectively, of RBC LA for a 5-biomarker Z-score composite were 0.82 (0.47, 1.18) and -0.40 (-0.76, -0.03), P-trend < 0.001 across quintile categories. Results were similar for RBC total n-6 PUFA (P = 0.042 for trend). For RBC AA, there was no significant trend across quintile categories [Q1: 0.15 (-0.21, 0.50), Q5: 0.29 (-0.06, 0.65); P = 0.711].

Conclusions: Higher RBC levels of total n-6 PUFA and LA were associated with lower composite scores for biomarkers of inflammation. These findings do not support the hypothesis that dietary LA is pro-inflammatory.

Funding Sources: The IU Foundation and Eli Lilly and Company funded this research.