Effect of ginseng saponins on cholesterol metabolism. III. Effect of ginsenoside-Rb1 on cholesterol synthesis in rats fed on high-fat diet.

Abstract

Rats fed on high-fat diet showed a higher level of cholesterol in liver and a lower incorporation of ¹⁴C-acetate into liver cholesterol. The activity of HMG-CoA reductase, which is a key enzyme in cholesterol biosynthesis, was repressed in those rats. Ginsenoside-Rb₁ purified from Ginseng (the root of Panax ginseng C.A. MEYER) has been found to reverse such effect of high-fat diet when administered on earlier days of feeding.