Looking for anti-cholesterol medicine

2004/06/01 Andonegi Beristain, Garazi - Elhuyar Zientziaren Komunikazioa Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Unibertsitateak
• Osasuna

In fact, they want to know their effects on cholesterol and obesity. If the expected benefits are demonstrated, the ultimate goal would be to use them as additives in foods, as is done with vitamins and many other compounds.

Cholesterol metabolism

For this research, researchers have selected hamsters as experimental models. In fact, among laboratory rodents, hamster is the most human-like animal in cholesterol metabolism.

In the studies, researchers have worked with three hamster groups. In the diet of the first group linoleic acid has been added and in the diets of the other two groups conjugated linoleic acid has been added. Each group has been assigned a different isomer (type) to conjugated linoleic acid.

The key to the research is whether conjugated linoleic acids have advantages over normal linoleic acid. The first Hamster group, therefore, is used as control or reference.

Studies show that one isomer has no effect on cholesterol, but the other does. The second isomer significantly lowers blood cholesterol levels and also reduces just what is known as bad cholesterol. It does not affect good cholesterol.

However, with this second isomer, researchers found that in addition to lowering cholesterol levels, the liver of hamsters increased somewhat. Therefore, the team conducted biochemical and histological studies to check whether this conjugated linoleic acid isomer produced liver toxicity or not. They found no harm.

Man, similar but different

However, in human research the consequences are less clear. To explain why this happens one can say that in human trials there has been great variability. This is because there have been large differences in sex, metabolic status of people (obese, thin...), dose of the additive, duration of treatment and characteristics of the diet.

Therefore, the researchers would like to continue conducting a basic research on the mechanisms and effects of conjugated linoleic acid, but in collaboration with a group of people who would conduct studies in humans. In this way, research could be carried out in order to select and properly administer the most suitable foods and, at the same time, analyze the possible long-term adverse effects on the human body.

• Project title: Influence of two
  isomers of conjugated linoleic acid on the liver metabolism of cholesterol and triglycerides.
• Objective To analyze the influence
  of the two most abundant isomers of conjugated linoleic acid on cholesterol and triglyceride metabolism to determine whether its application is possible in cases of obesity and hypercholesterolemia.
• Director
  M P. Portillo Baquedano.
• Team
  M T. Macarulla, A. Fernandez-Quintela, V. Rodríguez Rivera, E. Simon, V. Navarro and A. Wide.
• Department
  of Pharmacy, Nutrition, Technology and Animal Production (Nutrition and Bromatology).
• Faculty
  of Pharmacy.
• Funding
  MCyT, Basque Government and UPV.