Abstract

BACKGROUND & AIMS
The enzyme stearoyl-coenzyme A desaturase 1 (SCD or SCD1) produces monounsaturated fatty acids by introducing double bonds into saturated bonds between carbons 9 and 10, with oleic acid as the main product. SCD1 is present in the intestinal epithelium, and fatty acids regulate cell proliferation, so we investigated the effects of SCD1-induced production of oleic acid in enterocytes in mice.

METHODS
We generated mice with disruption of Scd1 selectively in the intestinal epithelium (iScd1–/– mice) on a C57BL/6 background; iScd1þ/þ mice were used as controls. We also generated iScd1–/–ApcMin/þ mice and studied cancer susceptibility. Mice were fed a chow, oleic acid–deficient, or oleic acid–rich diet. Intestinal tissues were collected and analyzed by histology, reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction, immunohistochemistry, and mass spectrometry, and tumors were quantified and measured.

RESULTS
Compared with control mice, the ileal mucosa of iScd1–/– mice had a lower proportion of palmitoleic (C16:1 n- 7) and oleic acids (C18:1 n-9), with accumulation of stearic acid (C18:0); this resulted a reduction of the D9 desaturation ratio between monounsaturated (C16:1 n-7 and C18:1 n-9) and saturated (C16:0 and C18:0) fatty acids. Ileal tissues from iScd1–/– mice had increased expression of markers of inflammation activation and crypt proliferative genes compared with control mice. The iScd1–/– ApcMin/þ mice developed more and larger tumors than iScd1þ/þApcMin/þ mice. iScd1–/–ApcMin/þ mice fed the oleic acid-rich diet had reduced intestinal inflammation and significantly lower tumor burden compared with mice fed a chow diet.

CONCLUSIONS
In studies of mice, we found intestinal SCD1 to be required for synthesis of oleate in the enterocytes and maintenance of fatty acid homeostasis. Dietary supplementation with oleic acid reduces intestinal inflammation and tumor development in mice.