Hypocholesterolemic effect of pedada (Sonneratiacaseolaris) fruit flour in wistar rats

Pedada fruit is rich in dietary fiber and phenolic compounds which can reduce cholesterol levels in humans. The aim of this study was to investigate the cholesterol-lowering effect of pedada fruit flour (PFF) in rats. Five normal male Wistar rats were the normal control group (0) were fed AIN-93 M and twenty hypercholesterolemia male Wistar rats were randomly divided into 4 groups with different diets for 4 weeks. Group 1 (the hypercholesterolemia control) was fed an AIN-93M diet, no supplements. Groups 2, 3 and 4 were fed AIN-93M supplemented with 3%, 6%, and 9% PFF, respectively. Blood samples were taken on week 0, 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, and 4^th for total plasma cholesterol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c) and triglyceride analyses. The results showed that the PFF supplement significantly decreased (p = 0.000) the total plasma cholesterol levels by 32.45 -58.87 mg/dl; LDL-c by 32.06 - 55.54 mg/dl (p =0.000); triglyceride by 9.20 - 23.93 mg/dl (P = 0.000) respectively. HDL-c concentration remained unaltered (P=0.997). These results indicate the beneficial effect of PFF in the treatment of hypercholesterolemia. This effect is possible related to dietary fiber and phenol compounds on PFF.