Choosing hamsters but not rats as a model for studying plasma cholesterol-lowering activity of functional foods

Mol Nutr Food Res. 2009 Jul;53(7):921-30. doi: 10.1002/mnfr.200800517.

Abstract

Rats and hamsters are commonly used rodents to test the efficacy of cholesterol-lowering functional foods. In general, a diet containing 1% cholesterol for rats whereas a diet containing 0.1% cholesterol for hamsters is used to induce the hypercholesterolemia. The present study was carried out to compare hamsters with rats as a hypercholesterolemia model. Golden Syrian hamsters and Sprague Dawley rats were randomly divided into four groups and fed one of the four diets containing 0-0.9% cholesterol. Results demonstrated that serum total cholesterol (TC) in hamsters was raised 73-81% higher than that in rats fed the same cholesterol diets. Unlike rats in which HDL-C accounted very little for serum TC, the lipoprotein profile in hamsters was closer to that in humans. We investigated interaction of higher cholesterol diets with 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutary-CoA (HMG-CoA) reductase, low-density lipoprotein receptor (LDL-R) and cholesterol-7alpha-hydroxylase (CYP7A1), sterol regulatory element binding protein-2 (SREBP-2), and liver X receptor (LXR-alpha). Results showed hamsters and rats metabolized cholesterol differently. In view that hamsters synthesize and excrete cholesterol and bile acids in a manner similar to that in humans, it is concluded that hamsters but not rats shall be chosen as a model to study efficacy of cholesterol-lowering functional foods.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Cholesterol 7-alpha-Hydroxylase / analysis
  • Cholesterol, Dietary / administration & dosage
  • Cholesterol, HDL / blood
  • Cricetinae
  • Disease Models, Animal*
  • Feces / chemistry
  • Hydroxymethylglutaryl CoA Reductases / genetics
  • Hypercholesterolemia / therapy*
  • Mesocricetus
  • Rats
  • Rats, Sprague-Dawley
  • Receptors, LDL / genetics
  • Species Specificity
  • Sterol O-Acyltransferase / metabolism
  • Sterol Regulatory Element Binding Protein 2 / genetics
  • Triglycerides / blood

Substances

  • Cholesterol, Dietary
  • Cholesterol, HDL
  • Receptors, LDL
  • Sterol Regulatory Element Binding Protein 2
  • Triglycerides
  • Hydroxymethylglutaryl CoA Reductases
  • CYP7A1 protein, rat
  • Cholesterol 7-alpha-Hydroxylase
  • Sterol O-Acyltransferase