Nutrition
-
We investigated lipid metabolism in hypercholesterolemic rats after replacing casein with different amounts of undialyzed soybean protein fraction. ⋯ These results suggested a dose-dependent reduction in plasma cholesterol when casein was replaced stepwise with UDSP (5% or 10%) as a protein source. The hypocholesterolemic effect might have been due to an increase in total fecal steroid excretion.
-
Macrophages are the primary targets of bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The effects of cocoa extract on production of nitric oxide (NO) by murine J774.1 macrophages activated by LPS and interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) were examined. ⋯ These data suggested that cocoa extract contains a suppressor of NO production in murine macrophages activated by LPS and IFN-gamma. This effect does not appear to be caused merely by neutralization of LPS.