Dietary cholesterol affects lipid metabolism in rabbits

In vitro and in vivo cholesterol lowering ability of Lactobacillus pentosus KF923750

Lactobacillus pentosus KF923750 was characterised for probiotic related properties and then characterised for cholesterol uptake in vitro as well as in vivo using rabbits fed a high-cholesterol diet. The survival percentage of L. pentosus KF923750 was 100% at pH 3, 52.18% at pH 2 and 36.21% at pH 2 plus pepsin. Similarly, this strain appeared resistant to bile (0.1% [98.42%], 0.3% [88.52%], 0.5% [75.60%] and 1% [71.15%]), after 4 h exposure. Moreover, L. pentosus KF923750 controlled growth of Escherichia coli ATCC 25922 and Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923 through the production of a bacteriocin-like inhibitory substance and anti-adhesive capabilities. L. pentosus KF923750 was non-cytotoxic to eukaryotic cells but sensitive to some antibiotics. Compared with rabbits fed a high-cholesterol diet but without L. pentosus KF923750 supplementation, the plasma total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglycerides levels were significantly decreased in L. pentosus KF923750-fed rabbits by 11.54, 16.00 and 18.00%, respectively, with no significant change in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. The histological sections of livers revealed lesions in all the rabbits that were fed a high-cholesterol diet, but these were less pronounced in rabbits ingesting L. pentosus KF923750. This study highlights the potential of lactobacilli, such as L. pentosus KF923750, in the treatment or prevention of hypercholesterolemia.

Effects of dietary cholesterol and its oxidation products on pathological lesions and cholesterol and lipid oxidation in the rabbit liver

This study was conducted to determine the effects of dietary cholesterol (CHO) and cholesterol oxidation products (COPs) on the induction of pathological lesions in rabbit liver tissues. Liver lesions were induced only when the levels of CHO and COPs in the diet were very high. The amount of CHO measured in the liver increased when dietary CHO was increased; by comparison, dietary COPs affected liver CHO amounts to a lesser extent. The TBARS (thiobarbituric acid reactive substances) value measured for the liver samples also increased when dietary CHO and COP levels were elevated, and the TBARS value was more strongly affected by the amount of COPs in the diet than by the amount of CHO. At 6 and 12 weeks, COP levels were the highest in the group that received 1.2 g CHO + 0.8 g COPs, followed by the 0.5 g CHO + 0.5 g COPs and 1.6 g CHO + 0.4 g COPs groups; the control (0 g) group showed the lowest COP levels among all groups. In this study, we found that not only dietary CHO but also COPs were involved in hypercholesterolemia induced liver lesions when the amount of CHO and COPs was high.