Comparative hypocholesterolemic effects of five animal oils in cholesterol-fed rats

The hypocholesterolemic efficacy of various animal oils was compared in rat s given a cholesterol-enriched diet. After acclimatization for one week, ma le F344 DuCrj rats (8 weeks of age) that had been fed with a conventional d iet were assigned to diets containing 5% of oil from emu (Dromaius), Japane se Sika deer (Cervus nippon yesoensis, Heude), sardine, beef tallow, or lar d with 0.5% cholesterol for 6 weeks. After this feeding period, the concent rations of serum total cholesterol and of very-low-density lipoprotein + in termediate-density lipoprotein + low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol in the sardine oil group were significantly lower than those in the other groups. The serum high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol concentration in the Japane se Sika deer oil group was significantly higher than that in the other grou ps. The atherosclerotic index and liver cholesterol concentration in the sa rdine oil and Japanese Sika deer oil groups were significantly lower than t hose in the other groups. The fecal cholesterol excretion by the Japanese S ika deer oil group was significantly higher than that of the other groups, except for the sardine oil group, and the fecal bile acid excretion by the sardine oil group was significantly higher than that of the other groups, e xcept for the lard group. These results suggest that Japanese Sika deer oil reduced the atherosclerotic index and liver cholesterol concentration in t he presence of excess cholesterol in the diet as well as sardine oil did by increasing the excretion of cholesterol from the intestines of rats.