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Inhibition of Cholesterol Deposition in Livers of Mice Fed Phytosterols in Short-term Experiments

Department of Animal Nutrition and Agricultural Biochemistry, Faculty of Agriculture, The Hebrew University, Rehovot, Israel

The purpose of the present investigation was to compare the cholesterol-interfering effectiveness of campesterol, ß-sitosterol, stigmasterol, and ergosterol. Soy sterols at a level of 1.0% of the diet prevented the accumulation of cholesterol in the livers of growing mice fed 0.5% cholesterol over a period of 12 days. In the absence of dietary cholesterol, soy sterols did not affect liver values consistently. Elevated plasma cholesterol values resulted from feeding cholesterol, soy sterols, or a mixture of both. When the test period was reduced to less than 5 days, soy sterols lost part of their effectiveness in preventing elevated liver cholesterol concentrations in cholesterol-fed mice. Comparison of the effects of several phytosterols in preventing the deposition of cholesterol in mice livers in a 5-day test period showed that ß-sitosterol exhibited the greatest activity, followed by stigmasterol. Ergosterol and campesterol were relatively less effective. The livers of mice receiving campesterol in their diet contained this sterol in amounts averaging about 7% of total sterols. Smaller concentrations of campesterol were also found in plasma. No other phytosterols were detectable in appreciable amounts in liver and plasma. There does not appear to be a direct relation between the activities of the various phytosterols and the extent to which they are absorbed from the intestine.

Manuscript received 2 March 1970.