Effects of krill oil intake on plasma cholesterol and glucose levels in rats fed a high-cholesterol diet

Background In this study, whole krill oil (WKO) and phospholipid‐type krill oil (PKO) with different lipid composition were prepared. The effects of KO intake on plasma cholesterol and glucose levels in Wistar rats fed a high‐cholesterol diet (HCD) were investigated. Results WKO contained 37.63% triglycerides, 48.37% phospholipids, 13.54% free fatty acids and 0.66% cholesterol, whereas the corresponding values for PKO were 0.59, 69.80, 28.53 and 1.09% respectively. Meanwhile, PKO contained much more polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA, 37.76%) than WKO (28.36%). After 4 weeks of HCD consumption, plasma levels of total cholesterol (TC), low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL‐C) and glucose increased significantly, but that of high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL‐C) decreased significantly. The intake of PKO and WKO for 4 weeks caused a significant reduction in body weight gain and plasma levels of TC and LDL‐C in HCD‐fed rats. Compared with WKO, PKO was more effective in decreasing plasma TC and LDL‐C levels. Conclusion PKO showed better overall cholesterol‐lowering effects than WKO, which may be due to its higher n‐3 PUFA levels. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry