Effect of Pumpkin Dietary Fiber on Blood Lipid on Hyperlipidemic Rats

Objective: To assess the hypolipidemic effect of pumpkin insoluble dietary fiber(IDF)and soluble fiber(SDF)prepared with enzymatic method. Methods: An animal model of hyperlipidemia was established by feeding rats with a high-fat diet. And then the model animals were fed with compound feed supplemented with 2.5%,5% and 10% pumpkin dietary fiber for 4 weeks,respectively. The fecal fat content,the organ to body weight ratio,and liver fat content were measured. The total cholesterol(TC),triglyceride(TG),high density lipoprotein cholesterol(HDL-C),and low density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C)in serum were measured and atherosclerosis index(AI)was calculated. And the pathological changes of liver tissues were observed. Results: Pumpkin dietary fiber could increase the amount of feces,water content in feces and fat content in feces,reduce the content of liver fat,and alleviate the degree of fatty liver caused by high fat diet. Morever,the serum levels of TC,TG,and LDL-C decreased significantly(P<0.05)and the serum levels of HDL-C increased significantly(P<0.05)in the experimental groups fed with dietary fiber,compared with the high-fat group. And the results of experimental group fed with IDF were better than those fed with SDF. Conclusion: The results suggest that pumpkin dietary fiber can effectively improve the serum lipid levels in hyperlipidemia rats.