“Now we report a remarkable regression of diffuse coronary atherosclerosis in two patients with TGCV,” states Ken-ichi Hirano. “Both had suffered from refractory chest pain and diabetes until diagnosis with TGCV, and subsequent dietary intake of tricaprin led to symptom relief.”
Only a case study on two patients so very preliminary, but interesting.
Makes me wonder if its metabolite, decanoic acid, which is apparently in MCT oil, would have the same benefit.
Yes, the case study was only two patients, but looks promising.
Related:
The paper, “Remarkable regression of diffuse coronary atherosclerosis in patients with triglyceride deposit cardiomyovasculopathy,” was published in European Heart Journal at DOI:
As far as I can tell it’s not a commercially available supplement yet. The metabolite I mention above is actually better known as capric acid, a major constituent of MCT oil. There’s studies that show it’s good for CAD as well so I’ve decided to start adding a tablespoon to the morning coffee. A good size bottle at Costco is $20 and looks to be high quality (extracted from coconut oil without solvents).
Tricaprin is a commercially available food supplement that promotes lipid breakdown by heart muscle cells. In addition to relieving these patients’ troublesome and painful symptoms, tricaprin also resulted in remarkable regression of the triglyceride build-up in the blood vessels of the heart.
“While atherosclerosis regression following decreased serum lipid levels is well-described, this is the first report of regression due to increased triglyceride lipolysis within cells, and as such is a conceptually novel treatment for coronary atherosclerosis,” says Ken-ichi Hirano.
I just found more info on this study while trying to find Tricaprin…
Dietary tricaprin intake and ethical approval
Cases 1 and 2 added tricaprin to their usual diets using commercially available food supplements. Tricaprin is a class of medium-chain triglycerides (MCT). Synthetic MCT have been used in daily clinical practice for 60 years worldwide for patients with metabolic, cardiovascular, and neurological disorders (2, 3). In Japan, several kinds of food products (oil, powder, and jelly), with variable tricaprin composition, have been available during the last couple of decades (4, 5). The selection of food products was supervised by dieticians and physicians. In cases 1 and 2, the amount of tricaprin taken was calculated to be approximately 1.5g/day and 4.5g/day, respectively, much smaller than that used for ketogenic diets in patients with cancer or neurological disorders (2, 5). Patients were instructed to continue other medical therapies. No adverse effects were reported. A TGCV patient group (http://tgcv-pt-group.com/) supported patients when required. Information from the clinical charts, imaging, and laboratory data was collected after the patient completed an informed consent form. This study was approved by the Osaka University Hospital Ethical Committee (Approved No. 14207), and written informed consent was obtained from the patients.
The references in the supplemental information (4,5 mentioned above) are these MCT oils (I’m assuming all MCT oil brands are probably helpful in this area … but I’ve not done any research on this issue). Its not clear how much Tricaprin is in the typical MCT oil available in the US, etc. - if anyone can find this information please post.
In reference 4 they say:
The MCT oil and ketogenic formula (Ketonformula® 817-B) were provided as gifts from Nisshin Oillio (Tokyo, Japan) and Meiji Co. Ltd. (Tokyo, Japan), respectively.
It seems that “classical MCT oil” is about 95% tricaprin (C10)
The aim was to compare the acute ketogenic effects of the following test oils in healthy adults: coconut oil [CO; 3% tricaprylin (C8), 5% tricaprin (C10)], classical MCT oil (C8-C10; 55% C8, 35% C10), C8 (>95% C8), C10 (>95% C10), or CO mixed 50:50 with C8-C10 or C8.
Source:
Tricaprylin Alone Increases Plasma Ketone Response More Than Coconut Oil or Other Medium-Chain Triglycerides: An Acute Crossover Study in Healthy Adults
More importantly, it does seem that they’re using the wording C10 (capric acid) and tricaprin interchangeably. Could it be that the triglyceride form of capric acid is technically tricaprin, meaning it is three C10s on a glycerol? Either way, it seems that gastric lipase is what converts tricaprin to capric acid, so what reaches the bloodstream is capric acid, even if the previous assumption is wrong. At least that’s what I’m interpreting from this.
Seems there is a bit more to it. This description leads me to think that either form of C10/tricaprin eventually undergo transformations to the same thing. What’s your interpretation?
What are the triglyceride chain lengths found in Tricaprin?
Tricaprin contains medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) with chain lengths of C6 (caproic acid), C8 (caprylic acid), and C10 (capric acid). These chain lengths are beneficial because they are easily absorbed and utilized by the body for energy.
Are there any studies that show which chain lengths are the most beneficial?
Yes, there have been studies that show that the medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) with C8 (caprylic acid) and C10 (capric acid) chain lengths are most beneficial in terms of providing energy and improving cognitive function. However, it is important to note that the body can still benefit from the other chain lengths found in Tricaprin.
I have not fact checked playground.
Same question posed to ChatGPT:
What are the triglyceride chain lengths found in Tricaprin?
Tricaprin is a triacylglycerol (TAG) which is composed of three fatty acid chains attached to a glycerol backbone. The length of the fatty acid chains in Tricaprin can vary, but typically they are medium chain fatty acids (MCFAs) with chain lengths of 8-12 carbon atoms. Some Tricaprin made in laboratory setting have also been reported to contain long chain fatty acids (LCFAs) with chain length of 14-18.
Sharma, M., & Sharma, S. (2016). Structural and Biological Characteristics of Triglycerides. Journal of Lipids, 2016, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/6809181
Unfortunately, I do not have access to this reference.
ChatGPT can make up references, so that is probably a fake paper.
I wouldn’t rely on those types of scans shown in the first thread. They are very subject to tampering, choosing the perfect angle, etc. Of course it might not be a conscious process in the researcher.
Trying to reverse ASCVD shouldn’t even be a question until apoB and non-HDL-c is at optimal levels. Especially with studies like these, IMO.
One may not reverse ASCVD, but slowing down the progression would still justify supplementing it. There’s good enough evidence showing favorable effects from supplementing C8 and C10 (neuronal and cardiovascular).
