Cholesterol-lowering effects of dietary blue lupin (Lupinus angustifolius L.) in intact and ileorectal anastomosed pigs

The present study was undertaken to investigate the effect of cholesterol-enriched casein (CAS) and blue lupin seed (BL) diets on the cholesterol metabolism of intact (INT) and ileorectal anastomosed (IRA) pigs. For 3 weeks, four groups of six pigs were allocated to the treatments (CAS-INT, CAS-IRA, BL-INT, and BL-IRA). Diet-induced hypercholesterolemia was inhibited by the BL through a substantial decrease in plasma LDL-cholesterol. The BL also reduced liver esterified and total cholesterol, increased hepatic LDL receptor synthesis and HMG-CoA reductase activity, and stimulated intestinal bile acid reabsorption. The neutral sterol output was higher in BL- than in CAS-fed pigs. The bile acid output was lower in IRA than in INT pigs. Surgery also prevented steroid microbial transformation, but it did not influence plasma cholesterol levels. These results suggest that the hypocholesterolemic effect of the BL, compared with the CAS, is attributable to impaired intestinal cholesterol absorption, probably involving increased bile acid reabsorption and higher contents of dietary phytosterols, both factors that reduce the micellar solubilization of cholesterol. Furthermore, according to our data, the contribution of the large intestine to cholesterol metabolism is very weak.