Obesity and hyperlipidaemia increase the risk of CVD. Some strains of probiotics have been suggested to have potential applications in cardiovascular health by lowering serum LDL-cholesterol. In this work, high-fat diet-induced hyperlipidaemia in hamsters was treated with different doses (5 × 10 8 and 2·5 × 10 9 cells/kg per d) of heat-killed Lactobacillus reuteri GMNL-263 (Lr263) by oral gavage for 8 weeks. The serum lipid profile analysis showed that LDL-cholesterol and plasma malondialdehyde (P-MDA) were reduced in the GMNL-263 5 × 10 8 cells/kg per d treatment group. Total cholesterol and P-MDA were reduced in the GMNL-263 2·5 × 10 9 cells/kg per d treatment group. In terms of heart function, the GMNL-263 2·5 × 10 9 cells/kg per d treatments improved the ejection fraction from 85·71 to 91·81 % and fractional shortening from 46·93 to 57·92 % in the high-fat diet-fed hamster hearts. Moreover, the GMNL-263-treated, high-fat diet-fed hamster hearts exhibited reduced Fas-induced myocardial apoptosis and a reactivated IGF1R/PI3K/Akt cell survival pathway. Interestingly, the GMNL-263 treatments also enhanced the heat-shock protein 27 expression in a dose-dependent manner, but the mechanism for this increase remains unclear. In conclusion, supplementary heat-killed L. reuteri GMNL-263 can slightly reduce serum cholesterol. The antihyperlipidaemia effects of GMNL-263 may reactivate the IGF1R/PI3K/Akt cell survival pathway and reduce Fas-induced myocardial apoptosis in high-fat diet-fed hamster hearts.Key words: Hyperlipidaemia: LDL-cholesterol: Lactobacillus reuteri GMNL-263 (Lr263): Heart protection It was recently proven that cumulative exposure to hyperlipidaemia during early adulthood increases the risk of CVD in a dose-dependent manner (1) . In fact, prolonged exposure to decreased LDL-cholesterol beginning in early life significantly reduces the risk of CVD (2) .Recently, some strains of probiotics, such as multi-strain probiotic capsules (Streptococcus thermophilus, Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Bifidobacterium lactis, Bifidobacterium longum and Bifidobacterium breve), were reported to significantly reduce serum cholesterol, waist circumference and body weight in adults with a BMI > 25 kg/m 2 during an 8-week treatment (3,4) . In addition, Lactobacillus reuteri NCIMB 30242, a probiotic associated with cardiovascular health, claims to clinically lower LDL-cholesterol levels by 11·6 % in hyperlipidaemic adults, and it has been approved by Health Canada (5,6) .