THE EFFECT OF OYSTER FUNGUS (PLEUROTUS-OSTREATUS) ON METABOLIC TURNOVER OF LOW-DENSITY LIPOPROTEINS IN RATS

An admixture of 4% of dried oyster fungus (Pleurotus ostreatus) to the diet of Wistar rats fed from weaning on a semisynthetic diet containi ng 0.3% cholesterol decreased, after 10 weeks of the duration of the e xperiment, the levels of serum and liver cholesterol by 25 and 33%, re spectively. The level of serum triacylglycerols was not affected by oy ster fungus but their contents in liver significantly decreased (by 13 %). The lowering in serum cholesterol level was determined almost to 5 5% by the decrease of cholesterol contents in very low density lipopro teins (VLDL) and to 38% in low-density lipoproteins (LDL), respectivel y. The contents of cholesterol in high-density lipoproteins was not in fluenced by oyster fungus. Oyster fungus containing diet increased by 28% the fractional turnover rate of LDL as determined by the analysis of I-125-LDL decay curves in serum. The acceleration of LDL metabolic turnover could be one of the important mechanisms transmitting the hyp ocholesterolaemic effect of oyster fungus in rats.