Fig. 2

Serum C18:0-TAG levels are responsive to dietary C18:0 intake and correlate with mitochondrial fusion. a Levels of serum C18:0 present in triglycerides (“C18:0-TAG”) significantly drops after 2 days of low C18:0 diet. (Data normalized to C16:0-TAG levels, n = 21 subjects, *p ≤ 0.05 by t-test.) b, c Serum C18:0-TAG levels increase after consuming the C18:0 drink but not the mock drink. b C18:0-TAG normalized to C16:0-TAG, since C16:0 is abundant and circulating levels are stable. c Molar percentage C18:0-TAG. (n = 21 subjects, error bars = std. dev. *p ≤ 0.05, ***p ≤ 0.001, ****p ≤ 0.0001 by t-test) d C18:0 intake does not affect C16:0-TAG levels. (n = 21 subjects, error bars = std. dev.) e–i Mitochondrial fusion in neutrophils correlates with serum C18:0-TAG levels (e–h) but not C16:0-TAG levels (i) across all subjects, timepoints, and dietary conditions. (n = 21 subjects × 7 timepoints = 147 serum samples)