Fish oil increases cholesterol storage in white adipose tissue with concomitant decreases in inflammation, hepatic steatosis, and atherosclerosis in mice.

Although fish oil has hypolipidemic and antiatherosclerotic properties, the potential for white adipose tissue (WAT) to mediate these effects has not been studied. LDL-receptor deficient (LDLR-/-) mice were fed high fat, olive oil-containing diets supplemented with additional olive oil or with fish oil for 12 wk. Fish oil feeding significantly reduced plasma lipid levels. In contrast, lipid storage in WAT was increased in fish oil-fed mice as evidenced by increased total fat (P