1. Wild Melon Seed Oil Reduces Plasma Cholesterol and Modulates Gut Microbiota in Hypercholesterolemic Hamsters.
- Author
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Hao W, Zhu H, Chen J, Kwek E, He Z, Liu J, Ma N, Ma KY, and Chen ZY
- Subjects
- Animals, Bacteria classification, Bacteria genetics, Bacteria isolation & purification, Bacteria metabolism, Cucumis melo chemistry, Cucumis melo metabolism, Fatty Acids, Volatile metabolism, Feces microbiology, Female, Humans, Hypercholesterolemia metabolism, Hypercholesterolemia microbiology, Male, Mesocricetus, Plant Oils chemistry, Seeds chemistry, Cholesterol blood, Gastrointestinal Microbiome, Hypercholesterolemia diet therapy, Plant Oils metabolism
- Abstract
Wild melon ( Cucumis melo var. agrestis) seed oil (CO) contains 71.3% polyunsaturated fatty acids. The present study investigated the effects of CO on blood cholesterol and gut microbiota. Hamsters ( n = 32) were randomly divided into four groups and given one of four diets, namely noncholesterol diet (NCD), high-cholesterol diet containing 0.1% cholesterol (HCD), HCD containing 4.75% CO (COL), and HCD containing 9.5% CO (COH) for 6 weeks. CO supplementation at 9.5% in the diet reduced plasma cholesterol by 24% and enhanced the excretion of fecal bile acids by 150%. CO supplementation upregulated the gene expression of hepatic cholesterol 7α-hydroxylase (CYP7A1). In addition, supplementation of CO in the diet remarkably increased the production of fecal short-chain fatty acids and favorably altered the relative abundances of Eubacteriaceae , Clostridiales_vadinBB 60_group, Ruminococcaceae , Streptococcaceae , and Desulfovibrionaceae at a family level. It was concluded that CO could reduce plasma cholesterol via promoting the excretion of fecal acidic sterols and modulating gut microbiota.
- Published
- 2020
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