2001 Volume 50 Issue 8 Pages 657-662
We examined the effect of tea catechins on the oxidation of dietary lipids by measuring [13C]-carbon dioxide in the expiration released from [1-13C] labeled tripalmitin. Sprague-Dawley male rats maintained with the basal diet for two weeks were fasted for 14 hr, then administered lipids containing [1-13C] tripalmitin (6.1%) at the dose of 0.33 g/kg body weight. After 2 hr, rats were administrated tea catechin orally at the dose of 300 mg/kg body weight. [13C]-Carbon dioxide in the expiration during every two hours after the administration of labeled lipid was collected up to eight hours. Saline without tea catechin was given as a control. The content of 13C in the carbon dioxide during 2 to 4 hr after the lipid administration increased significantly (p<0.001) in the tea catechin group as compared with the control group. Effect of the long-term administration of tea catechins was next examined by using rats that had been fed the diet containing 1% tea catechin for 2 weeks. No additional tea catechin was given. The content of 13C in the carbon dioxide in the 2-4 hr expiration increased significantly (p<0.001) in the tea catechin group as compared with the control group. These results clearly show that tea catechins, given as a single dose or as a long-term administration, facilitate the oxidation of dietary lipids in rats.
