Virgin Olive Oil Polyphenois Reduce Platelet Aggregation
Spanish researchers have shown that virgin olive oil (VOO) extracts can benefit heart and circulation health by reducing platelet aggregation in a study conducted on rats.
The polyphenols hydroxytyrosol (HT) and hydroxytyrosol acetate (HT-AC) were administered to rats in varying doses. Researchers stated: “HT and HT-AC, when given orally to rats, inhibit platelet aggregation and that among the mechanisms involved in this effect are decreased thromboxane synthesis and increased nitric oxide production. These results may offer an explanation for the beneficial effects of VOO in preventing cardiovascular events.”
The researchers sought to understand why the Mediterranean diet, which contains high levels of oils such as virgin olive oil, is effective in reducing cardiovascular risk. Olive oil consumption has been associated with improved lipid and thrombotic profile, insulin-mediated glucose metabolism, blood pressure, hemostasis, endothelial function, inflammation and oxidative stress.
In the study, dosage ranged from that expected to have little effect to one with an inhibiting effect. The range was above consumption levels in a regular olive oil-rich Mediterranean diet. “However, olive oil contains a complex of polyphenols and other antioxidants, which may have synergistic effects, as shown earlier for their antioxidant action,” the researchers wrote. “This makes it advisable to use higher doses when each compound is used separately.”
The compounds were administered orally for seven days. Platelet synthesis of thromboxane synthesis was inhibited by up to 30% by HT and 37% by HT-AC at a dose of 100 mg/kg per day.
“The implications of this finding merit attention because they provide evidence that these polyphenols inhibit platelet aggregation while sparing, to a large extent, prostacyclin synthesis, i.e., one of the main endogenous mechanisms that also inhibits platelet aggregation,” researchers stated.
Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 56(17):7872-7876, 2008
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