Volume 31, Nº 2, March/April 2018
DOI: http://www.dx.doi.org/10.5935/2359-4802.20180002
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Decrease in the Inflammatory Marker TNF-α after Consumption of Flaxseed by Hypercholesterolemic Rabbits
Maynara Leonardi Schuh Martins
Aniely Bacelar Rocco de Lima
Ana Flavia Champoski
Pamela Cristiani Pereira
Fernando Martins
Carlos Tanizawa
Leonardo Précoma
Patrícia Campelo
Luiz César Guarita-Souza
Dalton Bertolim Précoma
Abstract
Background: Functional foods such as flaxseed have been commonly consumed to prevent atherosclerosis.
Objectives: To assess the effects of flaxseed in atherogenesis in rabbits consuming a high-cholesterol diet.
Methods: Thirty male albino rabbits were randomized to three groups based on a 12-week dietary treatment: control group (G1), standard diet; high-cholesterol diet (G2), standard diet plus 0.25% cholesterol from lyophilized eggs; and high-cholesterol plus flaxseed (G3), similar diet as G2 plus flaxseed. Biochemical (total cholesterol [TC], high-density lipoprotein [HDL-C], low-density lipoprotein cholesterol [LDL-C], and triglycerides) and immunohistochemical (intercellular adhesion molecule 1 [ICAM-1] and tumor necrosis factor alpha [TNF-α]) analyses were performed in all groups. P values < 0.05 indicated statistical significance.
Results: At 12 weeks, serum TC levels increased significantly in G2 and G3 compared with G1. Serum LDL-C levels were higher in group G2, and the increase in group G3 was approximately six times lower than that in G2. HDL-C levels increased in all groups, with the highest increase observed in G2. Triglycerides levels in G3 decreased by ~70% and differed significantly in G1 and G3 (p = 0.034) and G2 and G3 (p = 0.015). ICAM-1 levels increased only in aortic segment 4 in G3. TNF-α levels in G3 were similar to those in the control group, while the levels in G2 were greater than twice as those in the control group (p < 0.05).
Conclusions: The group fed with a functional diet (flaxseed) showed decreased development of atherosclerosis, reduced serum triglycerides levels, and lower TNF-α levels on immunohistochemistry. (Int J Cardiovasc Sci. 2018;31(2)114-122)
Keywords: Rabbits; Flax / seeds; Atherosclerosis / prevention & control; Diet, Atherogenic; Cholesterol, Diet; Obesity, Sedentary Lifestyle
