Dietary α-cyclodextrin lowers low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and alters plasma fatty acid profile in low-density lipoprotein receptor knockout mice on a high-fat diet

• Published in: Metabolism, clinical and experimental Vol. 57; no. 8; pp. 1046 - 1051
• Main Authors: Wagner, Elke Maria, Jen, Kai-Lin Catherine, Artiss, Joseph Donald, Remaley, Alan Thomas
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, NY Elsevier Inc 01.08.2008; Elsevier
• Subjects: alpha-Cyclodextrins - pharmacology; Animals; Atherosclerosis - blood; Atherosclerosis - metabolism; Atherosclerosis - prevention & control; Biological and medical sciences; Body Weight - drug effects; Cholesterol Esters - blood; Cholesterol, LDL - blood; Dietary Fats - administration & dosage; Eating - drug effects; Endocrinology & Metabolism; Fatty Acids, Nonesterified - blood; Feeding. Feeding behavior; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Lipid Metabolism - drug effects; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Mice, Knockout; Random Allocation; Receptors, LDL - genetics; Receptors, LDL - metabolism; Triglycerides - blood; Vertebrates: anatomy and physiology, studies on body, several organs or systems; Rodentia; Lipids; Fatty acids; Cholesterol; Feeding; Blood plasma; Lipoprotein LDL; Vertebrata; Mammalia; Diet; Mouse; Animal; Fat; Endocrinology
• ISSN: 0026-0495; 1532-8600; 1532-8600
• DOI: 10.1016/j.metabol.2008.02.020

High dietary intake of saturated fat and cholesterol, and elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels are some of the modifiable risk factors for cardiovascular disease. α-Cyclodextrin ( a-CD) when given orally has been shown in rats to increase fecal saturated fat excretion and to reduce blood total cholesterol levels in obese hypertriglyceridemic subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus. In this study, the effects of dietary a-CD on lipid metabolism in low-density lipoprotein receptor knockout mice were investigated. Low-density lipoprotein receptor knockout mice were fed a “Western diet” (21% milk fat) with or without 2.1% of a-CD (10% of dietary fat content) for 14 weeks. At sacrifice, there was no difference in body weight; but significant decreases were observed in plasma cholesterol (15.3%), free cholesterol (20%), cholesterol esters (14%), and phospholipid (17.5%) levels in mice treated with α-CD compared with control mice. The decrease in total cholesterol was primarily in the proatherogenic apolipoprotein B–containing lipoprotein fractions, with no significant change in the high-density lipoprotein fraction. Furthermore, α-CD improved the blood fatty acid profile, reducing the saturated fatty acids (4.5%) and trans-isomers (11%) while increasing (2.5%) unsaturated fatty acids. In summary, the addition of α-CD improved the lipid profile by lowering proatherogenic lipoproteins and trans-fatty acids and by decreasing the ratio of saturated and trans-fatty acids to polyunsaturated fatty acids (−5.8%), thus suggesting that it may be useful as a dietary supplement for reducing cardiovascular disease.