Modulating Lipid and Lipoprotein Metabolism
Todd C. Rideout, PhD, will test the combination of two nutraceuticals for potential application in the prevention and treatment of metabolic syndrome, a group of risk factors that contribute to increased cardiovascular disease.
Principal Investigator: Todd C. Rideout, PhD
Funding Agency: University at Buffalo
Period: 09/2011-09/2014
Abstract: Atherogenic dyslipidemia and aberrant lipoprotein metabolism contribute substantially to increased cardiovascular disease risk in the metabolic syndrome (MetSyn), a clustering of metabolic abnormalities with an underlying chronic increase in inflammatory and oxidative stress markers. The dyslipidemic phenotype in the MetSyn is characterized by increased LDL-C, oxidized LDL-C, and triglyceride-rich lipoproteins and a reduction in cardioprotective HDL-cholesterol. Although diet therapies are considered first-line treatment of the MetSyn, these therapies are most often limited to general recommendations for reduced consumption of saturated fat, trans fat, cholesterol and simple sugars. However, specific dietary bioactive compounds that function to regulate cellular metabolism at a molecular level will likely play an important role in future personalized dietary therapies for the prevention and treatment of the MetSyn. Two nutraceuticals with potential application in the prevention and treatment of MetSyn are plant sterols (PS) and α-lipoic acid (α-LA). Both PS and α-LA have been shown to effectively reduce blood lipids by modulating intracellular cholesterol and triglyceride metabolism within the intestine and liver. The global objectives of this study are to access the efficacy of a PS/α-LA combination in modulating lipid and lipoprotein metabolism and cholesterol kinetic response in the obese Zucker rat.
