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Nutrient Interactions and Toxicity

Taurine Prevents Hypercholesterolemia in Ovariectomized Rats Fed Corn Oil but Not in Those Fed Coconut Oil

Department of Biological Resources, Faculty of Agriculture, Ehime University, Matsuyama 790-8566, Japan and ^* Department of Hygiene, Kinki University, School of Medicine, Osaka 589-8511, Japan

²To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: ebihara{at}agr.ehime-u.ac.jp.

We studied whether the type of dietary fatty acid influences the preventive effect of taurine on the ovarian hormone deficiency–induced increase in plasma cholesterol concentration in 6-mo-old ovariectomized rats. Rats were fed one of the following four diets for 28 d: purified diets based on corn oil, which is rich in linoleic acid, with or with out taurine (50 g/kg) or purified diets based on coconut oil, which is rich in lauric and myristic acids, with or without taurine. Body mass gain, food intake, liver weight and plasma apolipoprotein (apo) A-I, apo B, LDL and VLDL concentrations were not affected by the diets. On the other hand, taurine lowered the plasma total cholesterol concentration (P < 0.02) in rats fed corn oil, but not in those fed coconut oil. In rats fed both types of oils, taurine increased the LDL receptor mRNA level (P < 0.01), hepatic cholesterol 7-hydroxylase activity (P < 0.01) and fecal bile acid excretion (P < 0.01). Taurine increased the HMG-CoA reductase mRNA level (P < 0.02) in the liver of rats fed coconut oil, but not in those fed corn oil. Taurine increased liver total lipid (P < 0.05) and triglyceride (P < 0.05) concentrations in rats fed corn oil, but not in those fed coconut oil. These results indicate that the effect of taurine on ovarian hormone deficiency–induced changes in cholesterol metabolism is influenced by the type of dietary fatty acids.

KEY WORDS: • ovariectomy • taurine • fatty acid • plasma cholesterol • rats