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Effect of Dietary Fat, Starch and Cellulose on Fecal Bile Acids in Mice¹

Department of Pharmacology, University of Florence, Viale G. B. Morgagni 65, 50134 Florence, Italy ^* Department of Work Environment, University of Lowell, Lowell, MA 01854

The effect of dietary fat, starch and cellulose on individual and total fecal bile acids was studied in mice after 4 wk of feeding diets containing different levels of fat (5 and 29%), starch (3, 36 and 57–65%) and cellulose (2 and 10%). Diet affected the fecal concentration of deoxycholic acid, ß-muricholic acid and total bile acids. Increasing dietary fat from 5 to 29% significantly increased the level of deoxycholic acid and total bile acids. An increase in dietary cellulose from 2 to 10% significantly decreased the level of deoxycholic acid, ß-muricholic acid and total bile acids. High levels of dietary starch (36 and 57–65%) did not significantly affect the excretion of deoxycholic, ß-muricholic and total fecal bile acids. Starch was able to bind bile acids in vitro and to affect the level of fecal free bile acids. In high fat diets, the level of free bile acids was lower in the feces of animals fed 36% starch diets than in those fed 3% starch diets. This reduction of free bile acids was accompanied by a reduction in colon proliferative activity. We suggest that free, rather than total, bile acids are the effective damaging agents for colon mucosa, and may represent a risk factor in the development of cancer.

KEY WORDS: • fecal bile acids • starch • colon cancer • cellulose • dietary fat • mice

¹ Supported by grants from Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche and Ministero della Pubblica Istruzione, Italy.

² D. Kriebel was supported in part by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Grant R01-ES04202.

Manuscript received 13 January 1989. Revision accepted 24 July 1989.