Effect of dietary cholesterol on cholesterol synthesis in breast-fed and formula-fed infants

J Lipid Res. 1993 Aug;34(8):1403-11.

Abstract

The fractional synthesis rate (FSR) of cholesterol was measured in 6 breast-fed and 12 formula-fed infants (ages 4 to 5 months) using the 2H2O method. The breast-fed infants had higher cholesterol intakes (18.2 +/- 4.0 vs. 3.4 +/- 1.8 mg/kg per day, P = 0.001), plasma total cholesterol (183 +/- 47 vs. 112 +/- 22 mg/dl, P = 0.013), and plasma low density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol (83 +/- 26 vs. 48 +/- 16 mg/day, P = 0.023) than the formula-fed infants (6.9 +/- 2.6 vs. 2.1 +/- 0.6%/day, P < 0.001). Among all infants, there was a significant inverse relationship (P = 0.002, r = 0.66) between the FSR of cholesterol and dietary cholesterol intake. Our findings indicate that the greater cholesterol intake of the breast-fed infants was associated with elevated plasma LDL-cholesterol concentrations and that cholesterol synthesis in human infants may be efficiently regulated via HMG-CoA reductase when infants are challenged with high intakes of dietary cholesterol.

Publication types

  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Breast Feeding
  • Cholesterol / biosynthesis*
  • Cholesterol / blood
  • Cholesterol, Dietary / administration & dosage
  • Cholesterol, Dietary / pharmacology*
  • Deuterium
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Infant
  • Infant Food* / analysis
  • Kinetics
  • Male
  • Milk, Human* / chemistry
  • Regression Analysis

Substances

  • Cholesterol, Dietary
  • Cholesterol
  • Deuterium