Safety assessment of medium- and long-chain triacylglycerols containing 30% (w/w) medium-chain fatty acids in mice and rats

•MLCT containing high contents of 30% (w/w) MCFA were prepared.•The safety of MLCT were assessed for the first time.•The maximum tolerated dose was determined to exceed 54.33 g/kg bw.•No dose-related adverse effects were observed in the 90-day feeding study.•No differences were observed in the evaluation of embryotoxicity and teratogenicity.

A novel medium- and long-chain triacylglycerols (MLCT), with 30% (w/w) medium-chain fatty acids (MCFA) was evaluated for its safety as a dietary fat in mice and rats. The subacute oral toxicity study showed that the maximum tolerated dose exceeded 54.33 g/kg body weight (kg bw)/day. In the 90-day feeding study, no dose-related adverse effects were observed in rats administered diets formulated with different levels of MLCT (2.0, 4.0, and 8.0 g/kg bw/day) as compared to the rapeseed oil control diet. Further safety assessment in pregnant rats did not reveal any significant difference relative to the control at a treatment level up to 8.0 g MLCT/kg bw/day. The results from this study indicated the safe use of MLCT with high contents of MCFA in food products for improving human health.