Submitted on April 29, 2003
Revised on June 26, 2003
Accepted on June 27, 2003
Phosphatidylcholine enriched diet prevent gallstone formation in mice susceptible to cholelithiasis
Joelle Kasbo, Tuchweber Beatriz, Shahid Perwaiz, Guylaine Bouchard, Huguette Lafont, Nicole Domingo, Francoise Chanussot, and Ibrahim M. Yousef
Pharmacology, University of Montreal, Montreal, Quebec H3C 3J7
Corresponding Author: ibrahim.yousef{at}umontreal.ca
Cholesterol gallstones, affect approximately 10-15 % of the adult population in North America. Phosphatidylcholine (PC) is considered as the main cholesterol solubilizer in bile. The present study examined the effect of PC enriched diet on gallstone incidence in mice susceptible to cholelithiasis. The result obtained showed that feeding lithogenic diet (LG) diet to these mice for 4 or 8 weeks resulted in cholesterol gallstone incidence of 47% and 89% respectively. These gallstone incidences were either reduced or prevented (during the time of the study) when LG diet was enriched with 2% or 6% PC respectively. The cholesterol saturation index (CSI) was significantly reduced in mice fed with LG + 6 % PC diet but no significant change was observed in mice fed LG + 2 % PC diet as compared to mice fed LG diet alone. However, in both groups, the CSI remained significantly higher than control mice fed Purina chow diet. The biliary anionic polypeptide fraction (APF), was significantly increased in mice fed LG + 2 % PC diet and was reduced in those fed LG + 6 % PC diet. In conclusion, Prevention or delay of gallstones formation was not due to consistent effect on biliary lipid composition suggesting that the effect of PC must be related to its direct effect of cholesterol solubilization and /or the effect of additional non lipid biliary component such as APF.
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