The aim of the study was to verify in a cardio-oncological model experiment if conjugated linoleic acids (CLA) fed to rats with mammary tumors affect the content of selected macro- and microelements in their myocardium. The diet of Sprague-Dawley females was supplemented either with CLA isomers or with safflower oil. In hearts of rats suffering from breast cancer, selected elements were analyzed with a quadrupole mass spectrometer with inductively coupled plasma ionization (ICP-MS). In order to better understand the data trends, cluster analysis, principal component analysis and linear discriminant analysis were applied. Mammary tumors influenced macro- and microelements content in the myocardium to a greater extent than applied diet supplementation. Significant influences of diet (p = 0.0192), mammary tumors (p = 0.0200) and interactions of both factors (p = 0.0151) were documented in terms of Fe content. CLA significantly decreased the contents of Cu and Mn (p = 0.0158 and p = 0.0265, respectively). The level of Ni was significantly higher (p = 0.0073), which was more pronounced in groups supplemented with CLA. The obtained results confirmed antioxidant properties of CLA and the relationship with Se deposition. Chemometric techniques distinctly showed that the coexisting pathological process induced differences to the greater extent than diet supplementation in the elemental content in the myocardium, which may impinge on cardiac tissue's susceptibility to injuries.
Keywords: breast cancer; cardio-oncology; chemometry; conjugated linoleic acid; heart.