Wheat germ policosanol failed to lower plasma cholesterol in subjects with normal to mildly elevated cholesterol concentrations

Lin, Yuguang; Rudrum, Mike; Wielen, R.P.J. van der; Trautwein, Elke A.; McNeill, Gerald P.; Sierksma, Aafje; Meijer, G.W.

doi:10.1016/j.metabol.2004.05.006

Cited by 64 publications

(62 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…More recently a growing body of evidence has emerged from independent laboratories testing the effects of policosanols on hypercholesterolemic individuals (Lin et al, 2004;Reiner et al, 2005;Berthold et al, 2006;Cubeddu et al, 2006;Dulin et al, 2006;Greyling et al, 2006). Various sources of policosanols such as wheat germ (Lin et al, 2004), rice and sugar cane, both the original mixture (Berthold et al, 2006;Dulin et al, 2006) and alternative preparations (Cubeddu et al, 2006;Greyling et al, 2006) have been shown to have no significant cholesterol-lowering effect.…”

Section: Human Studies Investigating Policosanol Efficacymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Various sources of policosanols such as wheat germ (Lin et al, 2004), rice and sugar cane, both the original mixture (Berthold et al, 2006;Dulin et al, 2006) and alternative preparations (Cubeddu et al, 2006;Greyling et al, 2006) have been shown to have no significant cholesterol-lowering effect. Inclusion criteria for study populations were similar to the Cuban original studies, so was the case for policosanol dose and administration regimen.…”

Section: Human Studies Investigating Policosanol Efficacymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Inclusion criteria for study populations were similar to the Cuban original studies, so was the case for policosanol dose and administration regimen. The matrix used in the administration was usually the tablet on its own, with the exception of one study which incorporated policosanols into chocolate pellets (Lin et al, 2004). All studies supplemented the treatment or placebo with the evening meal as per previous research, based on the fact that cholesterol synthesis is highest at night (Parker et al, 1982;Cella et al, 1995).…”

Section: Human Studies Investigating Policosanol Efficacymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The source and composition of policosanol mixtures are now at the core of the controversy around their cholesterol-lowering efficacy, especially since the use of different policosanol products resulted in different research outcomes (Varady et al, 2003;Wang et al, 2003;Lin et al, 2004;Reiner et al, 2005;Wang et al, 2005;Greyling et al, 2006). Although compositions of different mixtures have not been directly compared to date, chemical analyses of certain alternative policosanol preparations Lin et al, 2004; show very little difference with the original Cuban SCP, especially in their octacosanol content, deemed to be the active component of the mixture.…”

Section: Composition and Metabolism Of Policosanol Mixturesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Policosanols are found in a large variety of plants and, therefore, the need to test various sources and preparations was manifested in a series of independent studies conducted in Europe (Lin et al, 2004;Reiner et al, 2005), North America Wang et al, 2005) and South Africa (Greyling et al, 2006) using extracts from wheat (Lin et al, 2004), sugar cane Wang et al, 2005;Greyling et al, 2006) and rice Wang et al, 2005). None of the mentioned studies was able to replicate the substantial cholesterol lowering outcomes of original research.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Evaluation of cholesterol-lowering and antioxidant properties of sugar cane policosanols in hamsters and humans

Kassis

2008

Appl. Physiol. Nutr. Metab.

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Atherosclerosis prevention is now a major focus of the scientific community and the pharmaceutical industry. Sugar cane policosanols (SCP) have gained increasing popularity over the last decade as a result of numerous studies conducted in Cuba considering SCP as the natural alternative to statin drugs. However, independent research on policosanols was not able to replicate cholesterol reductions reported by Cuban laboratories. No independent study to date has examined the cholesterol-lowering effect and antioxidant capacity of original SCP in humans. In addition, since independent research was criticized because of the use of alternative policosanol formulations, the source and composition of policosanol mixtures are now at the core of the policosanol controversy.The aim of the present thesis project was first to compare the composition and cholesterol-lowering effects of different SCP preparations in hamsters, and secondly to test the cholesterol-lowering efficacy, mechanism of action and antioxidant capacity of the original Cuban SCP in hypercholesterolemic humans.Study 1: Forty-eight male hamsters were randomly assigned to 4 groups for a period of 4 weeks (i) non-cholesterol control, (ii) cholesterol control, (iii) original SCP and (iv) alternative SCP. Hamsters were sacrificed and blood was collected at the end of the feeding period for lipid measurements.Study 2: Twenty-one hypercholesterolemic volunteers consumed 10 mg/day of SCP or a placebo for a period of 28 days in a crossover trial. Plasma lipid levels and LDL oxidation were measured at the start and end of supplementation phases. Cholesterol absorption and synthesis were assessed using single isotope single tracer technique and deuterium incorporation respectively.There was no significant difference in cholesterol-lowering efficacy between hamsters in the original and alternative SCP groups relative to control. Similarly, in hypercholesterolemic humans, original SCP supplementation did not significantly improve lipid parameters and no change in cholesterol absorption or synthesis was observed relative to control. In vivo assessment of LDL oxidation showed no significant changes in oxidized LDL concentration relative to baseline and control.

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