Effects of Chambirum on Radical Scavenging Activity and Serum Lipid Levels in Rats Fed Cholesterol

Abstract

To evaluate of biological activity of Chambirum (Amaranthus lividus) in vitro and in vivo, we investigated the free radical scavenging activity of its extracts in vitro and the effect of lyophilized powder on the serum lipid profile of rats fed cholesterol. ABTS, DPPH, and NO radical scavenging activities were tested from water and 80% ethanol extracts of Chambirum, and biological activities of the ethanol extracts were significantly higher than the water extracts. The total lipid and total cholesterol content of serum, atherogenic index (AI), and cardiac risk factor (CRF) were decreased significantly for the groups fed with a 5% and 10% supplement of Chambirum powder (HCA1 and HCA2) in comparison with the group fed cholesterol (HC). Triglyceride content decreased drastically in the HCA2 group, while its content was not decreased in the other group. HDL-cholesterol content was elevated in the HCA1 and HCA2 groups, but was not significantly different to the supplemented amount of Chambirum powder. GPT and γ-GTP activities were decreased significantly in the groups fed with Chambirum powder compared to the HC group. And the content of the lipid peroxide level was the same trend. Therefore, these results give evidence that Chambirum might be useful in the control of induced disorders by dietary cholesterol and/or lipids.