Moringa leaf powder modulate reverse cholesterol transport without changing plasma lipids in guinea

Leaves from the plant Moringa Oleifera have been found to improve insulin resistance, reduce inflammation and lower plasma lipids in several animal models. The polyphenols/flavonoids present in Moringa leaves (ML) appear to be the bioactive components responsible of these beneficial effects. In this study we hypothesized that Moringa leaves (ML) would improve lipid profile by modulating the size and number of lipoprotein subfractions (large, medium or small) and affect reverse cholesterol transport (RCT) in guinea pigs. Twenty four 3-month old male Hartley guinea pigs, were given a hypercholesterolemic diet with 0.25% cholesterol and were randomly allocated to either one of three Moringa groups (n=8/group): control (0% ML), Low Moringa (10% ML) or High Moringa (15% ML), corresponding to a daily intake of 0, 3 or 4.5 g ML/day. Animals consumed these diets for 6 weeks. Macro and micronutrients were adjusted for all diets, the only difference being the flavonoids and polyphenols present in ML. After sacrific...