Grant: Engage Grants Program

Oil rich in the n-3 fatty acid stearidonic acid (SDA) from the Ahiflower plant (Buglossoides arvensis) istrademarked and marketed for human use having achieved food approvals in the US and UK (with othercountries pending). The next steps in the commercialization of Ahiflower oil for Nature's Crops Internationalinclude developing and commercializing it as an omega-3 supplement for animals, including horses.Arthritis is the most significant cause of lameness in horses and can lead to the early retirement of otherwisehealthy animals. Previous research in a variety of species has shown that long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fattyacids (PUFA) have the potential to mitigate the pain and inflammation caused by arthritis, as well as possiblyslowing down joint degradation. In arthritic horses, supplementation with these PUFA resulted in an increasedstride length and reduced inflammatory markers in horses. At present, the most effective long-chain PUFAsource is marine oil but it is expensive, not sustainable, and quite unpalatable to horses. Ahiflower oil isunique in that it contains the precursor fatty acid, SDA (stearidonic acid), that can convert to the long-chainPUFA in the body more directly than the precursor fatty acids in other oils such as flax. We want to investigatethe use of ahiflower oil in racing Standardbred horses to increase the amount of long-chain PUFA in theirsystems and to reduce the amount of inflammation they suffer. We will compare dietary supplementation ofahiflower oil with flax and corn oil to racing horses and measure differences in fatty acid composition of bloodand several inflammatory markers.Ahiflower oil, produced and marketed by Nature's Crops International, may prove to be a healthy, economicaland more sustainable alternative to marine oil sources and a more effective source of long-chainpolyunsaturated fatty acids than other plant sources. We anticipate that results from this preliminary study willlead to increased market potential for ahiflower oil sales, thereby resulting in increased manufacturing andsignificantly increasing sales and revenue.