Articles |
Presented in part at the Pennington Biomedical Research Symposium on Nutrition, Genetics, and Heart Disease, Baton Rouge, La, March 12-14, 1995.
From the Departments of Comparative Medicine and Biochemistry, Bowman Gray School of Medicine of Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC.
Correspondence to Lawrence L. Rudel, Department of Comparative Medicine, Bowman Gray School of Medicine, Medical Center Blvd, Winston-Salem, NC 27157-1040.
| Abstract |
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Key Words: cholesteryl ester LDL HDL oleate
| Introduction |
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To obtain data on CAA directly, we have used a primate model, the African green monkey, in which remarkable similarities to human beings in dietary fatty acid responsiveness of plasma lipoproteins14 15 16 17 and the association of high LDL-C and low HDL-C with exacerbated CAA7 16 17 18 19 have been documented. A disadvantage of this species is that atherosclerotic lesion development does not occur as rapidly as in other primate species, but a major advantage is that the atherosclerotic lesions are more similar to those seen in humans, both in distribution and in composition, than for other primate species.
Three groups of monkeys were selected that had equivalent mean±SD
values for total cholesterol and HDL-C in response to a
challenge with a diet containing saturated fat and
cholesterol.20 After a monkey-chow washout
period, the animals were then started on diets enriched with one of
three individual fatty acids, ie, monounsaturated
(18:1), polyunsaturated (18:2), or saturated (16:0) fatty acids. Two
different periods of dietary fatty acid enrichment were actually
performed, with the second period being the longest (
3.5 years) and
having the most striking degree of individual fatty acid enrichment,
with over 70% of 18:1 or 18:2 and 40% 16:0. Data comparing the
effects of the different diets on plasma lipid and lipoprotein
endpoints are available.20 The present article details
lipid and lipoprotein data collected throughout the experiment and
presents the findings for CAA.
| Methods |
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Body weights in each animal were measured monthly throughout the study. Average values (mean±SEM) rose slightly throughout the study (an average rate of 0.1 kg/y) and averaged 6.1±0.4, 6.1±0.4, and 6.5±0.6 kg for the saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fat groups, respectively; no statistically significant differences among groups were found. Over the 5 years of the study, 2 animals from each diet group died. Necropsies were performed, and pneumonia (1), enteric disease (4), and kidney failure (1), each apparently unrelated to the diet exposure, were identified as causes of death. Animals were housed throughout the study in an AALAC (American Association for the Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care)-accredited facility in adjacent individual cages in rooms where as many as 24 animals faced each other. Animals were fed weighed portions of food twice daily to assure that they received 100 kcal·kg-1·d-1 and raw carrots were given three times a week as a snack. In addition, a veternarian and/or an animal technician inspected all animals twice daily. All procedures were approved by the animal care and use committee of this institution.
Plasma was isolated from blood drawn into EDTA-containing vacuum tubes from animals that were sedated with ketamine hydrochloride (10 mg/kg) after an overnight fast.20 The frequency of blood sampling was bimonthly (occasionally more frequent) for routine measurements of total cholesterol,21 TGs,22 and HDL-C.23 Aliquots of plasma samples from seven selected bleedings across period 2, which had been stored at -80°C from the time of collection, were analyzed for apolipoproteins B, E, A-I, and A-II concentrations by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays.24 25
On three different occasions during the last 36 months of the study, plasma was collected from each animal for a more detailed lipoprotein characterization. Isolation and separation of lipoproteins was done20 according to published methods,26 and LDL-C concentrations were measured directly. An agarose column packed with 4% agarose (BioGel A 15m, 200 to 400 mesh, BioRad, Inc) was used for lipoprotein separation when larger amounts of isolated purified lipoprotein were needed for chemical and physical characterizations; a Superose 6 column (Pharmacia Biotech, Inc) was used when cholesterol distributions were the primary endpoint. Measurement of LDL particle size, expressed as molecular weight in grams per micromole, was accomplished during the chromatographic separation of lipoproteins.27 Purity of lipoprotein classes isolated chromatographically is excellent26 ; albumin contamination is absent, and LDL and HDL do not contaminate each other.
Chemical endpoints were determined by using enzymatic assays after extraction and solubilization of the lipids in an aqueous buffer.28 For determination of individual CE compositions in lipid extracts, lipid classes were separated by using thin-layer chromatography with Empore TLC sheets (Analytichem International). The CE bands were scraped off the plate, and after saponification the fatty acids were methylated and separated by gas liquid chromatography.14
LDL Tm was measured by using a MicroCal ultrasensitive
differential scanning calorimeter (MicroCal Inc) interfaced to a
personal computer. LDL preparations from the agarose column were
concentrated to
5 mg cholesterol/mL by using Centriflo
ultrafiltration membranes (Amicon). Solutions were degassed under
vacuum. The sample cell was filled with 1.3 mL of the LDL sample, and
the reference cell was filled with an equal volume of column buffer
(0.9% NaCl, 0.01% EDTA, and 0.01% NaN3, pH 7.4).
The samples were preequilibrated at 5°C for 45 minutes before
initiation of the heating scan from 5°C to 60°C at a rate of
90°C/h. During the preequilibration run the sample was maintained
under a positive-pressure nitrogen atmosphere. Peak Tms
were determined digitally from the computer output of each run.
Tm accuracy of the instrument was monitored with
dimyristoyl phosphatidylcholine vesicles.
For quantification of CAA, hearts were removed at necropsy and were perfusion-fixed in 10% neutral-buffered formalin at a pressure of 100 mm Hg for 1 hour. The LAD was then dissected free from the heart, cleaned of adventitia, and stored in formalin at 4°C until it was extracted in chloroform/methanol (2:1) for determination of lipid composition. The remainder of the heart was stored in formalin and used for histological evaluation of atherosclerosis. Five 3-mm serial sections were trimmed from each of the remaining two main coronary arteries (the right coronary and the left circumflex arteries), which were then dehydrated and embedded in paraffin. Slides were made with coronary arteries in cross section and were stained with Verhoeff-van Gieson's stain. CAA was evaluated morphometrically as the intimal area (area in square millimeters between the IEL and the lumen) and the percent lumen stenosis (cross-sectional intimal area divided by the area within the IELx100). For each animal values were expressed as the mean for the 10 sections of coronary artery evaluated per heart. In a separate study in African green monkeys, evaluation of mean intimal area in the right coronary artery, LAD, and left circumflex artery showed correlation coefficients >.85 when comparing intimal areas in any two arteries (L.L.R., J.K.S., unpublished data, 1995). The data suggest that the use of one of the coronary arteries for chemical analysis of atherosclerosis extent will not adversely affect the outcome of morphometric evaluations and will reflect a comparable extent of atherogenesis.
Several different statistical analyses were done. All group comparisons of outcome measures (or transformations) among diet groups were made by ANCOVA. This analysis was adjusted for prerandomization values of factors that were significantly associated with the endpoint of interest and were done to correct for chance imbalances among groups in prognostic factors and to reduce the variance of the estimate of group differences, thereby increasing the power of the comparisons. For atherosclerosis measurements, TPC response during the challenge diet period was a significant prognostic factor and was used as the covariate for the atherosclerosis endpoints. For the area inside the IEL of the coronary arteries, body weight was used as the covariate. Post hoc analyses were done with Fisher's preferred least-significant differences test. In most cases, the probability of statistical significance is as indicated. Any difference greater than P=.1 was considered nonsignificant, but in most cases the probability is still indicated for reference. Pearson correlations and regression analyses were performed to determine significant prognostic factors.
| Results |
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Plasma triacylglycerol concentrations were also monitored bimonthly throughout the study. The values were very low for all groups, as is typical for monkeys fed high-fat diets, but the triacylglycerol concentrations for the polyunsaturated fat group were consistently the lowest, with the mean±SEM of the individual animal means being 15±3 mg/dL and the range in mean values on different dates being only 9 to 19 mg/dL. The means of the individual animal means for plasma triacylglycerol concentration in the saturated and monounsaturated fat groups were comparable, 26±4 and 24±7 mg/dL, with the range in mean values on different dates being 20 to 33 and 15 to 37 mg/dL for these diet groups, respectively. Repeated-measures ANCOVA showed that the triacylglycerol concentrations in the polyunsaturated fat group compared with those in the other two groups were significantly lower (P<.01) during period 2.
HDL-C data were gathered bimonthly throughout periods 1 and 2 (Fig 2
). The HDL-C concentration in the
monounsaturated fat group consistently had
the highest mean value, 87±2 mg/dL, and was significantly higher than
that for the saturated fat group (75±1 mg/dL; P=.06) and
that for the polyunsaturated fat group (48±1 mg/dL;
P=.0001). The HDL-C in the polyunsaturated fat group was
significantly lower than in the saturated fat group
(P=.0008). The average of individual animal means for HDL-C
in period 2 alone was 47±1 mg/dL for the polyunsaturated fat group,
90±2 mg/dL for the monounsaturated fat group, and
80±2 mg/dL for the saturated fat group.
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ApoA-I and apoA-II concentrations were also measured in a total of
seven plasma samples taken from each animal during period 2
(Table 1
). The means for apoA-I concentration were 200,
261, and 272 mg/dL for the polyunsaturated, saturated, and
monounsaturated fat groups, respectively. The
difference between apoA-I concentration in the polyunsaturated fat
group and that in the saturated and monounsaturated
groups was statistically significant as measured by
repeated-measures ANCOVA. No significant difference in apoA-I
concentration was found between the saturated and
monounsaturated fat groups. For apoA-II, the values
were low, averaging 18, 21, and 26 mg/dL for the polyunsaturated,
saturated, and monounsaturated fat groups,
respectively, with the only significant difference in apoA-II
concentrations being between the polyunsaturated and
monounsaturated fat groups.
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Whole plasma apoB concentrations were also measured periodically on
seven different occasions during period 2. The averages were 153, 125,
and 114 mg/dL for the saturated, polyunsaturated, and
monounsaturated fat groups, respectively; these
values were significantly different by ANCOVA (Table 1
). Post hoc
analyses showed that the apoB concentration for the
monounsaturated fat group was significantly lower
than for the saturated fat group, and apoB in the saturated fat group
was significantly higher than in the polyunsaturated fat group. The
values for apoB concentration in the
monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat groups did
not differ.
ApoE concentrations were measured in the same plasma samples as for other apolipoproteins. The highest average apoE concentration (8.1 mg/dL) was found in the saturated fat group and was significantly higher than the apoE concentrations in the other two groups, which averaged <6 mg/dL (NS).
Plasma LDL was isolated and characterized in pure form. Dietary fatty
acid effects on particle composition and size were numerous (Table 2
). The percentage of plasma cholesterol as
LDL-C was lower in the monounsaturated fat group
than in the other two groups, which had equivalent percentages. LDL-C
concentrations in the polyunsaturated and
monounsaturated fat groups were similar, with means
of 166 and 184 mg/dL, respectively; the LDL-C concentration in the
saturated fat group averaged 272 mg/dL. During the
chromatographic isolation of LDL, the average LDL particle
size was measured as LDL molecular weight. The LDL particles were large
in the saturated fat group, were of comparable size in the
monounsaturated fat group, and were smaller in the
polyunsaturated fat group. The LDL-Cto-protein ratios, which
generally reflect the particle size, were higher in the saturated and
monounsaturated fat groups compared with those in
the polyunsaturated fat group (Table 2
).
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The LDL Tms were measured by differential scanning
calorimetry (Table 2
). The saturated fat animals had the highest
temperatures, the monounsaturated fat group had
intermediate LDL Tm, and the polyunsaturated fat
group had the lowest LDL Tm. Because the TG content is very
low, Tm is determined in these LDL particles by the CE
composition in the core lipid.
The LDL of the saturated fat animals contained about 650 CE molecules
with saturated fatty acids, which was 1.7 to 1.8 times their number in
the monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat groups
(Table 2
). The LDL particles from the
monounsaturated fat group were greatly enriched in
cholesteryl oleate molecules (
2000 per LDL particle), which was a
much higher number than for either of the other two groups. The LDL of
the saturated fat group still had more than twice the number of
cholesteryl oleate molecules than the LDL of the polyunsaturated fat
animals. The number of cholesteryl linoleate molecules was highest in
the LDL of the polyunsaturated fat group, being almost three times the
number in the LDL of the monounsaturated fat
animals and twice as many as the LDL of saturated fat animals.
CAA in each of the animals was quantified chemically and histologically. While none of the animals were maintained on a cholesterol-free diet, several studies have been completed in which low-cholesterol diet groups were maintained for as long as 5 years without CAA development, even in animals that were fully mature throughout the study.7 16 Therefore, we are confident that the atherosclerosis quantified for this study developed during the period of diet induction.
The data in Fig 3
show the largest coronary
artery lesions (based on intimal area) from an animal selected from
each diet group. These lesions show the characteristics of
atherosclerosis that developed in the animals of this
study. The differences in size (measured as intimal area) for these
three sections, 1.60, 0.76, and 0.31 mm2, closely
paralleled the mean values for the CAIA for the saturated,
monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated diet groups.
The most advanced lesion was found in an animal from the saturated fat
group. This is a very complicated lesion with a large amount of
extracellular debris. Evidence of what appear to be several waves of
lesion development are provided by the pattern of cellularity and
necrosis. A large necrotic core is present in the lesion that
includes calcification. The IEL is disrupted at a number of points, and
medial damage is significant. The large size of the lesion has
significantly narrowed the lumen of the artery.
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The lesion from the animal fed monounsaturated fat is also an advanced lesion. Many aspects of lesion complication are apparent, including intimal accumulation of extracellular lipid, cholesterol clefts, macrophage infiltration, fibrous tissue accumulation, IEL disruption, and medial damage. The thickness of this lesion is not as great as for that of the saturated fat animal; this appears to be partly due to the ectasia (increase in coronary artery lumen diameter) that has occurred in this artery in response to the atherogenic process actively under way. Artery enlargement in the face of significant lesion development appears to have maintained lumen diameter at nearly a normal size. The lesion in the polyunsaturated fatfed animal is also a complicated lesion with all the hallmarks of fibrous tissue accumulation, extracellular lipid accumulation, IEL disruption, and evidence of various cellular responses during lesion development. The extensiveness of this lesion is more limited than for those of the other two diet groups, covering only about 50% of the surface of the artery.
The amount of ectasia in each diet group was evaluated by examining the area (in millimeters squared) within the IEL. The average IEL area was smallest in the polyunsaturated fat group (0.97±0.1 mm2), larger in the monounsaturated fat group (1.34±0.12 mm2), and largest in the saturated fat group (1.51±0.16 mm2). ANCOVA, with body weight as the covariate to account for differences in animal size, indicated that the IEL area was significantly smaller in the polyunsaturated fat group than in either the saturated fat group (P=.005) or the monounsaturated fat group (P=.05). The average IEL areas in the monounsaturated fat and saturated fat groups were not significantly different (P=.35).
The data in Fig 4
illustrate the average CAIA as a
measure of the extent of atherosclerosis that developed
in each of the animals. Because of the remarkable differences among
individuals in atherogenic response (about 4 orders of magnitude), the
intimal areas are plotted on a log scale. The heights of the bars, rank
ordered from the worst to least according to the amount of intimal
area, indicate that the extent of CAIA in the animals fed
monounsaturated fat was similar to that in the
animals fed saturated fat. In the polyunsaturated fat group, 7 of 12
(58%) animals had measurable CAIA, whereas 11 of 13 (85%) and 10 of
13 (77%) animals in the monounsaturated and
saturated groups, respectively, had measurable CAIA. The difference in
CAIA between the polyunsaturated fat and saturated fatfed
animals was P=.07 by ANCOVA, while the level of significance
for the difference in CAIA between the polyunsaturated fat and
monounsaturated fatfed animals was
P=.09. The comparison between the CAIA for
monounsaturated and saturated fat animals showed no
difference (P=.89). The patterns shown in Fig 4
and the
statistical analyses both support the conclusion that the
extent of CAA was similar in the animals fed saturated and
monounsaturated fats, and greater for both groups
than that in the animals fed polyunsaturated fat.
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A third morphometric measurement, percent lumen stenosis, was
made. Percent stenosis, which is calculated from the intimal
area divided by IEL areax100, estimates the degree of lumen narrowing
as a result of lesion development. Stenosis is an indicator of
the severity of atherosclerosis; the percent lumen
stenosis of the most significant lesion from each of the study
animals is graphed in Fig 5
. The most affected group was
the saturated fat group, with 7 animals with >10% lumen narrowing, 4
with >20%, and with the most affected animal having about 80% lumen
stenosis. In the monounsaturated fat group
4 animals exceeded 10% lumen stenosis and 3 were >25%. Three
animals were >10% but only 1 was >20% in the polyunsaturated fat
group; 5 animals in this group had <1% lumen narrowing. By ANCOVA,
P=.08 for group difference; P=.05 for percent
stenosis in the animals fed saturated versus polyunsaturated
fat; P=.18 for percent stenosis in the animals fed
saturated versus monounsaturated fat; and
P=.6 for percent lumen stenosis in the animals fed
monounsaturated versus polyunsaturated fat.
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Data for CE accumulation in the LAD are shown for each of the animals
in Fig 6
. CE concentration tended to be higher in the
animals fed saturated fat (mean value, 10.8 mg/g) and
monounsaturated fat (mean value, 9.6 mg/g) than in
the animals fed polyunsaturated fat (mean value, 5.5 mg/g). The most
affected animals in the monounsaturated fat group
had a similar amount of CE as those in the saturated fat group. The
pattern of coronary artery CE accumulation suggests that a diet
effect was present, but the difference was not significant
(P=.3 by ANCOVA). Although the amount of free
cholesterol that accumulated in the coronary
arteries is high in this primate species, no real trend for a
difference between diet groups in free cholesterol
concentration existed (P=.9 by ANCOVA).
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Accumulation of individual CEs in the coronary arteries also
was monitored (Table 3
). Two consistent
diet-related differences were the greater amounts of CEs with
saturated fatty acids (myristate, palmitate, and stearate) in
the coronaries of the saturated fatfed group and the greater
amount of cholesteryl oleate accumulation in the coronaries of the
monounsaturated fatfed animals. More
cholesteryl oleate accumulated than any other CE in the two diet groups
with the most atherosclerosis. The amount of
cholesteryl oleate that accumulated in the coronary arteries of
the animals fed monounsaturated fat appeared to be
as great or greater than that in the coronaries of the saturated fat
animals. Four of the 5 animals with the higher accumulation of
cholesteryl oleate (>10 mg/g) in the coronary arteries were in
the monounsaturated fat group (Fig 7
). In the saturated fat group, 6 of 13 animals had
cholesteryl oleate concentrations >5 mg/g. The amount of cholesteryl
oleate in the coronary arteries of the polyunsaturated fat
animals was modest by comparison, with the highest values being 3.2 and
3.3 mg/g.
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Relations between the various lipoprotein and
atherosclerosis measurements were examined with
correlation analysis recognizing that group size was small.
Various correlation matrices were constructed. With a few exceptions,
depending on the endpoints being compared, the correlation coefficients
were highest in the saturated fat group (Table 4
). The
correlation between coronary artery CE concentration was
positive and significant for comparisons of TPC, LDL-C, and LDL
molecular weight. The correlation between coronary artery CE
and HDL-C was negative, just below statistical significance. An
interesting outcome is illustrated for the comparison of
coronary artery CE with LDL Tm. The correlation was
significant (r=.62, P<.01) in the
monounsaturated fat group, lower (r=.4)
in the saturated fat group, just missing significance, and no
correlation was found in the polyunsaturated fat group
(r=.1). The correlation was strongest in the
monounsaturated fat group, the only group in which
the LDL Tm spanned body temperature, indicating that the
physical state of the core lipids of LDL may be an important endpoint
in determining CAA extent.
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The data in Fig 8
illustrate the relation of LDL
particle size with coronary artery cholesterol
ester concentration as a measure of atherosclerosis
extent. LDL size and CAA have been well correlated,5 7 16
and this was true in these studies. All groups in Fig 8
appear to fit
the same regression line, with more animals with higher LDL particle
size being found in the saturated and
monounsaturated fat groups. In no case did the
regression lines for the individual groups appear to differ
significantly. The regression line that fit the entire data set had a
correlation coefficient of r=.7, and the correlation
coefficients for individual groups were r=.78 for the
polyunsaturated fat group, r=.7 for the
monounsaturated fat group, and r=.64 for
the saturated fat group. This comparison suggests that the extent of
atherosclerosis is highly related to factors that
affect LDL particle size, and cholesteryl oleate accumulation is a
major contributor to this endpoint.
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| Discussion |
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To provide a thorough examination of the quality, quantity, and
severity of atherosclerosis, we examined the
coronary arteries for several morphometric endpoints, CE
content, and types of CEs present. While variability was great and
statistical significance in all these endpoints was not achieved,
consistent trends were noted, including the accumulation in the
coronaries of cholesteryl oleate as the major CE in the saturated and
monounsaturated fat groups (Fig 7
and Table 3
), ie,
the groups with the most extensive atherosclerosis.
Cholesteryl oleate is the primary product of tissue
(arterial and hepatic) ACAT when oleyl coenzyme A is
available as substrate,29 as it is for the saturated and
monounsaturated fat groups. The acyl coenzyme A
pools appear to have been enriched in linoleyl coenzyme A in the group
fed polyunsaturated fat so that, in this case, the ACAT product was
enriched in cholesteryl linoleate5 (Table 3
). LDL in the
animals fed monounsaturated fat was greatly
enriched in cholesteryl oleate, which shifted the LDL Tm
above body temperature (Table 2
). If CE droplets within lesions have
transitions above body temperature, the ability to hydrolyze and remove
these droplets would be decreased.30 Both the LDL CEs that
were deposited in the intima and those synthesized by
arterial ACAT will be so affected in the
monounsaturated and saturated fat groups but not
the polyunsaturated fat group. We suspect that this physical-state
difference may be a key contributor to the differences in
atherosclerosis that we found. It may be noted that
free cholesterol accumulation in the polyunsaturated fat
group was equivalent to that in the other two groups (Fig 6
), perhaps
suggesting that CE clearance from coronary arteries in this
diet group is proceeding, and perhaps even more efficiently than in the
other two groups based on the higher free
cholesteroltocholesteryl ester ratio.
In the current climate, in which interest in LDL oxidation is high, the
present findings are of particular interest. In monkeys fed the
same fats as described here, in vitro oxidation of the LDL of animals
fed mononsaturated fat is more difficult than oxidizing the LDL of
monkeys fed polyunsaturated fat,31 even though the vitamin
E contents of the LDL particles of the three diet groups are
similar.32 Similar observations on the susceptibility to
oxidation have been made with human LDL33 34 and are
likely due to the dramatic shifts in fatty acid composition in LDL
lipids induced by the type of dietary fat. The present findings
suggest that avoiding dietary polyunsaturated fat by substituting
monounsaturated fat as a means of protecting
against LDL oxidation, as has been recommended,33 34 will
be counterproductive for protection from CAA. Furthermore,
enrichment of LDL with cholesteryl linoleate, as occurs when diets rich
in linoleic acid are fed, has repeatedly been shown in humans to be
associated with decreased CHD.8 9 10 11 12 13 Animals fed linoleic
acid had a higher proportion of CEs as cholesteryl linoleate in LDL
(Table 2
) and in the CEs in the coronary arteries (Table 3
).
Yet, even with this enrichment in a more easily oxidized CE, the amount
of atherosclerosis was less. Polyunsaturated
fatrich diets as compared with saturated fatrich diets have
been repeatedly shown to decrease CAA in
primates6 7 16 18 35 ; no such effect of
monounsaturated richdiets in any primate has
yet been demonstrated.
The origin of the changes in LDL composition induced by dietary monounsaturated fat has been suggested by isolated liver perfusion studies. CE secretion is increased when liver CE content is increased,36 37 liver CE secretion is proportional to hepatic ACAT activity,5 and liver-derived CEs reflect the fatty acid composition of the diet when comparing polyunsaturated and saturated fats.37 Likewise, CE enrichment of LDL is proportional to hepatic ACAT activity.5 Therefore, it is our hypothesis that the cholesteryl oleateenriched LDL that accumulates as enlarged LDL particles in the plasma of monkeys fed monounsaturated fat are derived from cholesteryl oleateenriched LDL precursor lipoproteins secreted by the livers of these animals.
The reason that plasma LDL-C concentrations were not as high in the monounsaturated fat group as in the saturated fat group may be explained by the hypothesis made by Woollett and colleagues38 based on work in hamsters. Compared with other diets, monounsaturated fatty acidrich diets cause significantly higher liver CE concentrations in monkeys (L.L.R., J. Haines, R. Shah, J.K.S., unpublished data, 1995) and hamsters,38 likely as a result of enhanced ACAT that perhaps results from increased availability of the preferred substrate, oleyl coenzyme A. The apparent effect is to decrease the size of the putative hepatic regulatory pool of cholesterol, leaving hepatic LDL receptor levels higher and plasma LDL levels lower.38
In humans, LDL particle size is inversely related to plasma TG
concentrations; monkeys fit at the extreme low end of the TG
concentration spectrum, where the high lipoprotein lipase level found
in nonhuman primates fed fat-rich diets appears to keep plasma TGs
low.39 In monkeys, the CE-enriched LDL precursor particles
secreted by the liver undergo less intravascular modification
(TG-for-CE exchange, with subsequent TG removal via lipoprotein
lipase40 ) than in humans, since the residence time of the
TG-rich VLDL (and chylomicron) particles is less, even though CE
transfer activity is high in monkeys41 and could easily
facilitate this compositional change. Nevertheless, the extent of LDL-C
enrichment (measured as LDL-Cto-protein in Table 2
) overlaps the
range described as LDL-Cto-apoB for humans.42
A similar increase in secretion of hepatic CE in apoB-containing lipoproteins, presumably as ACAT-derived cholesteryl oleate, could occur in humans with increased risk for CHD. This likely would be expressed as a high cholesterol-to-apoB ratio in LDL, which has been identified in selected CHD patients.42 The presence in plasma of cholesteryl oleateenriched LDL precursor lipoproteins as well as LDL, per se, appears more atherogenic from this study. This finding may be closely related to the reason that humans with higher percentages of cholesteryl linoleate (and lower proportions of cholesteryl oleate) in LDL have a lower incidence of CHD.8 9 10 11 12 13 Unfortunately, the measurement of CE composition has not been made in several of the more recent studies of human LDL,42 although LDL particles become enriched in cholesteryl oleate when diets rich in oleate are fed, indicating that humans and monkeys respond similarly.33 43
Finally, this is another study in which a group of monkeys with lower HDL-C concentrations (the polyunsaturated fat group) had less atherosclerosis than groups with significantly higher HDL.16 17 18 19 This is the first study in which we have shown that a diet group of monkeys with HDL-C concentrations higher than in other groups and LDL-C concentrations lower than in other groups was not protected by this lipoprotein profile. These findings suggest that the importance of HDL as a protective factor for CAA is secondary to the degree that LDL particles are atherogenic. The compositional changes in LDL particles induced by the monounsaturated fatrich diet, even in the absence of elevated LDL-C concentrations, were sufficient to overcome higher, presumably more beneficial HDL levels.
| Selected Abbreviations and Acronyms |
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| Acknowledgments |
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Received August 7, 1995; accepted September 21, 1995.
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S. J. Nicholls, P. Lundman, J. A. Harmer, B. Cutri, K. A. Griffiths, K.-A. Rye, P. J. Barter, and D. S. Celermajer Consumption of Saturated Fat Impairs the Anti-Inflammatory Properties of High-Density Lipoproteins and Endothelial Function J. Am. Coll. Cardiol., August 15, 2006; 48(4): 715 - 720. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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