Abstract:The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of phytosterol esterenriched vegetable oil on the serum concentration of cholesterol and to assess its safety in healthy subjects with normocholesterolemics. Twenty-two healthy subjects completed this study in a double blind, parallel arm design. The subjects were randomly divided into 2 groups: control group (n = 11) and phytosterol ester-enriched group (n = 11), and fed either 42 g of phytosterol ester-enriched vegetable oil or control vegetable oil, containing about 1.336 g and 0.117 g of phytosterol (as the major free sterol) respectively, daily for 4 weeks. Serum lipids, apolipoproteins, serum fat-soluble vitamins, serum phytosterols and biochemical parameters were measured. The subjects were asked to report any side effect. Phytosterol ester-enriched vegetable oil significantly reduced the concentrations of serum total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and apolipoprotein B, by 3.3%, 4.4% and 3.2% respectively, compared with control oil. No significant changes were found in the concentrations of triacylglycerol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, remnant-like lipoprotein cholesterol and other kinds of apolipoproteins. Neither vegetable oil affected the concentrations of fat-soluble vitamins (retinol and a-tocopherol) or b-carotene. Serum bsitosterol and campesterol were significantly higher in the phytosterol ester-enriched vegetable oil group compared with the control oil group. The concentrations of biochemical parameters did not change in either group. There were no side effects or serious adverse events in either group during the administration. In conclusion, the results showed that a daily 1.336 g intake of phytosterol (as the major free sterol) is effective in lowering serum total-and LDL-cholesterol in healthy men and has no negative physiologic action.

The percentage of MUFA to total fatty acids of beef differs among intermuscular, intramuscular, and subcutaneous fat even within an individual cow. Our objective was to investigate the variation of the percentage of MUFA by geometric and sectional change of marbling flecks in rib eye. Longissimus muscles of 8 Japanese Black steers from a common sire and a common maternal grand sire were used. Three slices (1 from rib roast and 2 from sirloin) from each animal were selected for analysis. Five marbling flecks from each slice were randomly taken to obtain the percentage of MUFA using gas chromatography. High-quality digital images of all slices were taken with a mirror-type camera. The area and location of each marbling fleck were calculated by image analysis. The marbling flecks were categorized by area [small <0.4 cm(2), medium 0.4 to 2.0 cm(2), large >2.0 cm(2)], by location (dorsal and ventral), and by slice section through the LM (front, middle, and back). The effects of classification according to the area, location, and slice section were statistically significant (P < 0.05) for the percentage of MUFA. Least squares means of the percentage of MUFA for marbling flecks of sizes small, medium, and large were 56.8, 58.4, and 60.2%, respectively, indicating that larger marbling flecks had greater MUFA (P < 0.05). Those of dorsal, ventral, front, middle, and back were 59.1, 57.8, 55.4, 59.9, and 60.1%, respectively. The percentages of MUFA of the marbling flecks located in the dorsal part were greater than those in the ventral part (P < 0.05). The percentages of MUFA from middle and back were greater than those from front (P < 0.01). We suggest that the area, location, and slice section of marbling would be the determining factors for the percentage of MUFA of marbling.

The reaction of benzylidene chlorides as well as 1,2-dihalogeno-1,2-diphenylethanes with sym-dichlorotetramethyldisilane in the presence of a catalytic amount of tetrakis(triphenylphosphine)palladium(0) gave aryl-substituted ethenes in good yields.

We investigated the effects of phytosterol esters on serum lipids and fecal steroids excretion. Golden Syrian Hamsters were fed diets containing 100 g of control oil, free phytosterol (FPS) oil or phytosterol ester (PSE) oil per kilogram of feed supplemented with cholesterol (2 g/kg feed), for 15 or 29 days. Each oil contained 0.36%, 3.71%, or 3.69% FPS or FPS-equivalent PSE, respectively. The serum total cholesterol concentrations in hamsters fed the FPS diet (216 6 mg/dL) or the PSE diet (220 5 mg/dL) were significantly lower compared with those fed the control diet (239 6 mg/dL) at day 29 (p<0.05). There was no significant difference in the ratio of non-HDL-cholesterol to HDL-cholesterol in any group at the same determination point. Fecal cholesterol excretion increased in hamsters fed the FPS diet and the PSE diet compared with those fed the control diet. These results suggest that PSE effectively lowers blood cholesterol, and that there is no difference between FPS and PSE regarding their cholesterol lowering effect.

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