Influence of Functional Food Containing Bacillus polyfermenticus SCD on Lipid and Antioxidant Metabolisms in Rats Fed a High-Fat and High-Cholesterol Diet

We evaluated the effects of newly developed functional food containing Bacillus polyfermenticus SCD as the main material on the lipid and antioxidant metabolisms of hypercholesterolemic rats. Thirty male SD rats were divided into three groups after a 1-week adaptation period and were fed with a high fat-cholesterol diet (control), or with a high fat-cholesterol diet supplemented with low or high doses ($3.1\;{\times}\;10^6\;cfu/day$ or $3.1\;{\times}\;10^8\;cfu/day$) of B. polyfermenticus SCD and other physiological active materials for 6 weeks. Both doses of B. polyfermenticus SCD significantly reduced hepatic total cholesterol and triglycerides, while increasing the fecal excretion rates of total lipid, total cholesterol and triglycerides. B. polyfermenticus SCD increased the total radical trapping antioxidant potential (TRAP). The erythrocytic glutathione peroxidase activity in the B. polyfermenticus groups was significantly lower than that in the control group. Plasma TRAP levels exhibited a highly significant negative correlation with hepatic total cholesterol while a significant positive correlation was detected between fecal total cholesterol and plasma TRAP. This hypolipidemic and antioxidative effect of B. polyfermenticus SCD seemed to be unrelated to its dosage. These results suggest that functional food containing B. polyfermenticus SCD can improve oxidative stress and hepatic lipid profiles by enhancing the excretion of cholesterol and triglycerides in feces of rats fed with high fat-high cholesterol diet.