Abstract:

Objective: To investigate the effect of capsaicinoids on serum lipids, hepatic lipids and cecum environment
in ovariectomized rats. Methods: Thirty mature female Wistar rats were divided into five groups. One group was shamovariectomized
as sham reference group. The other four groups were double ovariectomized and assigned as model group
and capsaicin groups at low (5.0 mg/(kg·d)), medium (10.0 mg/(kg·d)) and high doses (15.0 mg/(kg·d)) one week later. All
rats were sacrificed after 28 days of feeding and analyzed for triglyceride (TG) and cholesterol (TC) in serum and liver,
the area of cecum, the content of water, pH and short-chain fatty acid content in cecum, and intestinal microflora. Results:
The body weight, feed intake, serum lipids, liver fat, hepatic total cholesterol, hepatic triglyceride in the control group were
significantly higher than those in the sham group. Feeding capsaicinoids could reduce the body weight, body-weight gaining,
plasma cholesterol and fat, total cholesterol and triglyceride in liver in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, capsaicinoids
could also decrease the concentration of short-chain fatty acids and the amount of beneficial bacteria significantly (P ＜ 0.05), and
improve the concentration of free ammonia and pH of cecum content as well as the amount of harmful bacteria, significantly
(P ＜ 0.05), but there was no significant difference among different dose groups. Conclusion: Capsaicin may significantly
decrease estrogen deficiency-induced hypercholesterolemia in rats, and damage the cecum environment.

Key words: capsaicin, ovariectomized rat, serum lipids, hepatic lipids, cecum environment