Effects of β-Sitosterol on the Concentrations of Serum and Liver Cholesterol and Serum Apolipoproteins in Rats Fed Butter Fat

Male rats were fed on semipurified cholesterol-free diets containing butter fat with or without supplementary β-sitosterol. The expected rise of serum cholesterol caused by butter fat, as compared with safflower oil, was not able to be demonstrated, and hence the hypo-cholesterolemic effect of β-sitosterol as wel. However, the plant sterol effectively lowered the liver cholesterol level. Similar responses were also observed in mice. The distribution of cholesterol in serumlipoproteins remained unchanged among different dietary regimens. Butter fat increased the concentration of serum apoA-I in relation to safflower oil. There was possibly a trend toward higher serum apoA-I with supplementation of β-sitosterol in a butter-fat diet. The effect of the plant sterol on serum apoB was rather variable. The observation strongly suggests that alteration in cholesterol metabolism in these rodents may not satisfactorily be estimated by the serum cholesterol parameter alone when diets free of cholesterol are fed. The concentration of hepatic cholesterol and serum apolipoproteins seems a more apposite measure for this purpos.