Abstract
THE serum cholesterol-level in some animals is elevated above the normal value by the addition of cholesterol to the diet. In certain species, such as the chicken, cholesterol by itself brings about this increase; but in other species, exemplified by the rat, the presence of cholic acid is also required. The degree of hypercholesterolæmia is altered when certain vegetable and fish oils are added to the diet; but the observed effect of any one oil is dependent on the species of animal under investigation. De Groot and Reed1 showed that cod liver oil and corn oil prevented the increase in plasma cholesterol in rats due to dietary cholesterol and cholic acid. Dam et al. 2 investigated the effect of dietary cod liver oil and linseed oil in cholesterol-fed chickens, and found that both oils increased the hypercholesterolæmia caused by the dietary cholesterol. Similar experiments on chickens were performed by Wood and Biely3 using corn oil, tallow and various fish oils. Corn oil, tallow and herring oil were observed to increase the hypercholesterolæmia; but lingcod liver oil and halibut liver oil completely prevented the appearance of hypercholesterolæmia. Ratfish liver oil, dogfish liver oil and basking shark liver oil were intermediate in effect. In view of the diverse effects of the oils observed in the chicken studies, further investigations were carried out to obtain additional information about the mode of action of the oils. Corn oil, herring oil and lingcod liver oil were chosen for the investigation.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
De Groot, A. P., and Reed, S. A., Nature, 183, 1191 (1959).
Dam, H., Kristensen, G., Nielsen, G. F., and Søndergaard, E., Acta physiol. Scand., 45, 31 (1959).
Wood, J. D., and Biely, J., Can. J. Biochem. and Physiol. (in the press).
Siperstein, M. D., Nichols, jun., G. W., and Chaikoff, I., Circulation, 7, 37 (1953).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
WOOD, J., BIELY, J. A Substance in Lingcod Liver Oil which prevents Hypercholesterolæmia in Cholesterol-fed Chickens. Nature 185, 473–474 (1960). https://doi.org/10.1038/185473a0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/185473a0
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.