Effect of Fat on Plasma and Tissue Cholesterol Concentration of Hyper-Eu- and Hypothyroid Rats. ∗

Abstract

Summary

A series of experiments was undertaken in an attempt to demonstrate the effects of dietary fats on plasma and liver cholesterol concentration in hyper-, eu- and hypothyroid rats. The lowering effect of unsaturated fat on plasma cholesterol seems to be independent of the thyroid state of the animal; that is, regardless of whether the animal is hyper- eu-, or hypothyroid, cholesterol levels of plasma are always lower when animals are fed cottonseed oil than when they are fed the same amounts of butter. In contrast to these effects on plasma, concentration of cholesterol in liver was always higher in animals which were fed unsaturated fat at any of the thyroid states.