Effect of ascorbic acid administration on B and E apoproteins in rats fed a cholesterol enriched diet

The effect of ascorbic acid on cholesterol metabolism is very well documented; it is ascribed to the activation of this vitamin on cholesterol 7 alpha-hydroxylase (EC 1.14) that activates the catabolism of cholesterol. In this paper we have studied the effect of the administration of ascorbic acid on B and E apoproteins of rats fed a diet enriched with 1.5% of cholesterol. The results obtained show that ascorbic acid is able to affect cholesterol metabolism by modifying the serum levels of apo B in total serum and in lipoprotein classes of density less than 1.050 g/ml. Moreover the ascorbic acid treatment reduced the amount of cholesterol and triglycerides in all lipoprotein classes examined. No significant change of total serum apo E was observed following ascorbic acid administration.