1985 Volume 31 Issue 2 Pages 225-232
The inhibitory effect of dietary taurine on cholesterol gallstone formation was studied using male mice of Jcl : ICR strain. Mice were provided three kinds of semi-purified diet; a cholesterol-free diet (standard), a lithogenic diet containing 0.5% cholesterol and 0.25 sodium cholate (C-CA), and a lithogenic diet supplemented with 5 taurine. The changes of total cholesterol in serum, cholesterol mass in the liver and the gall bladder, and gallstone incidence were studied as a function of time. Gallstone formation was observed only in the mice fed on the C-CA diet for more than 3 weeks. The changes of serum cholesterol concentration were not consistent with gallstone formation. The choles-terol mass of the liver in taurine-supplemented mice decreased after the 3rd week. Cholesterol content of the gall bladder increased with choles-terol gallstone formation. Therefore, the inhibitory effect of dietary taurine on cholesterol gallstone formation may be related to the decrease in cholesterol content of the liver.
