Effect of iron and zinc supplementation and its discontinuation on lipid profile in rats

The aim of this research was to investigate whether combined iron/zinc supplementation is more beneficial than iron supplementation alone from the perspective of the lipid profile in rats. The study was conducted on 6-week male Wistar rats in 3 stages: (1) 4-week adaptation to the diets: C (AIN-93M) and D (mineral mix without iron); (2) 4-week supplementation: 10-times more iron or iron and zinc compared to C; (3) 2-week post-supplementation period (the same diets as in the first stage). The iron and zinc content in serum was measured using ASA. Total cholesterol (TC), HDL cholesterol (HDL-C), non-HDL cholesterol (non-HDL-C) and triglycerides (TG) were determined. After 4-week supplementation (stage II) and post-supplementation (stage III) periods combined iron/zinc supplementation decreased HDL-C and increased non-HDL-C concentrations in control rats, and in contrast to iron supplementation alone TG concentration decreased. After stage II combined iron/zinc supplementation did not result in increased non-HDL-C and TG concentrations in iron deficient rats in contrast to iron supplementation alone. After stage III both iron and simultaneous iron/zinc supplementation were the cause of TC increase which was the result of the increase of non-HDL-C but not HDL-C concentration in iron deficient rats. In conclusion, there were no beneficial effects of simultaneous iron and zinc supplementation on the lipid profile of rats fed control and iron deficient diets. Combined iron and zinc supplementation may contribute to lower HDL-C and higher non-HDL-C concentrations.