Dietary intake of ain-93 standard diet induces Fatty liver with altered hepatic fatty acid profile in Wistar rats.

BACKGROUND There are several standard diets for animals used in scientific research, usually conceived by scientific institutions. The AIN-93 diet is widely used, but there are some reports of fatty liver in Wistar rats fed this diet. OBJECTIVE We aimed to evaluate the hepatic repercussions of the AIN-93 diet intake in Wistar rats. METHODS Forty newly-weaned 21-day-old male Wistar rats were fed either the AIN-93 diet or a commercial diet for either 1 month or 4 months. Weight gain, serum biochemistry, hepatic histology, and hepatic fatty acid profile were analyzed. RESULTS Hepatic steatosis was observed, especially in the group fed the AIN-93 diet. Serum blood glucose, absolute and relative liver weight and hepatic levels of oleic, palmitoleic, stearic, and palmitic fatty acids were related to the observed steatosis, while lipidogram and serum markers of liver function and injury were not. CONCLUSION AIN-93 diet induced acute hepatic steatosis in Wistar rats, which may compromise its use as a standard diet for experimental studies with rodents. The hepatic fatty acid profile was associated with steatosis, with possible implications for disease prognosis.