Effect of diet with high fats and cholesterol on PPARα gene expression and body cholesterol level in mice

AIM:To investigate the effects of dietary fats and cholesterol on liver PPARα gene expression and body cholesterol (Chol) level in C57BL/6J mice. METHODS:The animals (n=75) were randomly divided into five groups and respectively received formula mash for 6 weeks. RESULTS:As compared to Chol diet, Chol+PUFA diet produced significantly higher liver cholesterol (P<0.01), serum total cholesterol (TC), focusing on HDL-C. While Chol+MUFA diet resulted in unchanged serum TC and lower liver cholesterol (P<0.01). Chol+SFA diet rsulted in higher liver cholesterol (P<0.01) and serum TC, focusing on LDL-C. Furthermore, Chol+PUFA diet increased the mRNA and protein content of PPARα (P<0.01) in liver, while Chol+MUFA and Chol+SFA diets decreased the mRNA content of PPARα significantly (P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS:These results indicated that addition of fats containing PUFA to diet high in cholesterol increased PPARα mRNA and protein expression, addition of fats containing MUFA or SFA to diet high in cholesterol decreased PPARα mRNA expression. The change of PPARα gene expression may further affect body cholesterol level.