Single frequency intake of α-linolenic acid rich phytosterol esters attenuates atherosclerosis risk factors in hamsters fed a high fat diet

Emerging evidence suggested phytosterol esters (PE) exhibited an advantage over naturally occurring phytosterols in reducing atherosclerosis risk factors due to improved fat solubility and compatibility. However, the effects of dietary patterns of PE on lipid-lowering activity were limited and inconsistent. This study aimed to explore the effects of dose and frequency of α-linolenic acid rich phytosterol esters (ALA-PE) on cholesterol and triglyceride metabolism markers focused on intestinal cholesterol absorption and bioconversion of ALA in liver. Dose-dependency study Male Syrian golden hamsters were fed high-fat diets (HFD) containing low, medium and high dose of ALA-PE (0.72 %, 2.13 % and 6.39 %) for 6 weeks. The high fat diet contained 89.5 % chow diet, 0.2 % cholesterol, 10 % lard and 0.3 % bile salt. Dose-frequency study Male Syrian golden hamsters were provided: (I) 0.4 mL/100 g peanut oil by gavage once a day; (II) 0.4 mL/100 g ALA-PE by gavage once a day; (III) 0.2 mL/100 g ALA-PE by gavage twice a day; (IV) 0.133 mL/100 g ALA-PE by gavage three times a day; (V) 0.1 mL/100 g ALA-PE by gavage four times a day for 6 weeks with a high-fat diet simultaneously. ALA-PE dose-dependently lowered plasma total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) concentrations with a maximal decrease of 42 %, 59 % and 73 %, respectively (p