Telfairia occidentalis (fluted pumpkin) is one of the commonly consumed leafy vegetables in Nigeria. In order to justify its inclusion in
herbal preparations in
African traditional medicine, the possible hypolipidemic effect of this vegetable was investigated in rats fed a
cholesterol-rich diet. The ability of
Questran, a
hypolipidemic drug, to attenuate
hypercholesterolemia was also examined. Rats were fed with either a basal diet containing
cholic acid (0.2%) or a supplemented diet with T. occidentalis at the 3% and 6% levels.
Oral administration of
cholesterol for 9 consecutive weeks resulted in a significant increase (P < .001) in the relative weight of the heart of
cholesterol-fed rats. However, supplemented diets significantly (P < .001) ameliorated the
cholesterol-induced enlargement of the heart. Rats fed on supplemented diets had a dose-dependent reduction in plasma and postmitochondrial supernatant fraction (PMF)
cholesterol levels. In particular, supplemented diets containing 3% and 6% T. occidentalis decreased plasma and PMF
cholesterol levels by 20% and 30% and by 30% and 45%, respectively. A similar decrease in plasma and PMF
cholesterol levels was obtained in
Questran-treated hypercholesterolemic rats. Furthermore, 3% and 6% T. occidentalis-supplemented diets significantly (P < .05) decreased the
cholesterol-induced increase in plasma and PMF
low-density lipoprotein (
LDL) cholesterol levels by 24% and 48% and by 28% and 52%, respectively. In contrast, there was no significant difference (P > .05) in plasma and PMF
triglyceride levels of rats fed on supplemented diets when compared with
cholesterol-fed rats. There were significant decreases (P < .05) in lipid peroxidation levels in rats fed on the supplemented diets. Specifically, 3% and 6% T. occidentalis-supplemented diets decreased plasma and PMF lipid peroxidation by 24% and 20% and by 42% and 21%, respectively. This study demonstrates that T. occidentalis may be a useful
therapy for
hypercholesterolemia through reducing oxidative stress and
cholesterol levels.