Inhibitors of sterol synthesis. Hypocholesterolemic action of dietary 5α-cholest-8(14)-en-3β-ol-15-one in rats and mice

5α-Cholest-8(14)-en-3β-ol-15-one, at a level of 0.1% in a low cholesterol diet has been shown to have a profound hypocholesterolemic effect in rats. In one experiment the mean serum cholesterol level (mg per 100 ml ± S.E.M.) decreased from 71.2 ± 0.9 to 36.9 ± 3.3 after 7 days on the diet. In a second experiment the mean serum cholesterol value decreased from 86.4 ± 1.2 to 33.4 ± 3.9 after 8 days on the ketone-containing diet. The effects of the 15-ketosterol on serum cholesterol levels were significantly (p<0.001) different from those of eitheir ad libidum or pair-fed controls. The diet containing the ketone caused a significant decrease in food consumption and a slight decrease in body weight (10.2% and 3.1% in the two experiments). The ketone, at a level of 0.2% in the diet, caused a marked decrease in plasma cholesterol levels in mice. After 8 days of treatment the plasma cholesterol value (mg per 100 ml ± S.E.M.) of the treated mice was 35.8 ± 3.6 while that of pair-fed control animals was 114.4 ± 3.4.