Aker Says Mouse Study Shows Krill Oil Superior to Fish Oil for Glucose, Cholesterol Metabolism

According to krill oil supplier Aker BioMarine (Oslo, Norway), a new preclinical mouse liver study published in Frontiers in Nutrigenomics showed that krill oil better regulated the genes involved in glucose, lipid, and cholesterol metabolism than did fish oil. Krill oil also increased activity of the mitochondrial respiratory chain.

The company says that the phospholipid form of krill oil, compared to the triglyceride form of fish oil, down-regulated the activity of pathways involved in hepatic glucose production, as well as lipid and cholesterol synthesis. The company adds, however, “Neither diet elicited changes in plasma levels of lipids, glucose, or insulin, probably because the mice used in this study were young and were fed a low-fat diet.”

The study investigated the regulation of 20,118 genes in the mouse liver. For three months, mice were either fed, 1) a control diet without omega-3, 2) a diet supplemented with krill oil, or 3) a diet supplemented with fish oil.

Based on the study, Aker BioMarine says it is initiating a more detailed study on krill oil’s effects on hepatic lipid, glucose metabolism, and mitochondrial function.

“Clearly, this study demonstrates that omega-3 fatty acids in phospholipid form, which is abundant in krill oil, is more bioactive than the corresponding triglyceride form of the omega-3 fatty acids,” stated Jamie Barger, PhD, of LifeGen Technologies (Madison, WI), which performed the study. “This research builds upon the body of evidence supporting the theory that phospholipid-bound EPA and DHA is utilized more effectively. However, further research is necessary to explain why there is a difference between these two molecular forms of the beneficial fatty acids.”