Influence of apolipoprotein E phenotype on metabolism of lipids and apolipoproteins after plant stanol ester ingestion in japanese subjects

OBJECTIVE: We investigated the effect of apolipoprotein E phenotype on changes in plasma levels of lipids and apoproteins by plant stanol ester (PSE) ingestion in Japanese subjects whose diet is low in fat and cholesterol. METHODS AND RESULTS: The effect of PSE-containing spread was studied in a randomized, placebo-controlled trial. One hundred five healthy volunteers were enrolled for this study. Apolipoprotein E phenotyping was done in 96 of 105 subjects. We compared plasma levels at the start and end of the test period (4 wk). The daily ingestion of 2 g of plant stanols from the PSE spread significantly reduced plasma levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol by 8.9 ± 6.6% (mean ± standard deviation) in the E3 group and 10.4 ± 8.0% in the E4 group. The daily ingestion of 2 g of plant stanols from the PSE spread significantly decreased plasma levels of apoprotein B by 5.4 ± 7.9% in the E3 group and 8.9 ± 7.0% in the E4 group. No further reductions of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and apoprotein B were observed with 3 g/d of plant stanols from the PSE spread. CONCLUSION The ingestion of PSE spread significantly reduced plasma levels of total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and apoprotein B. However, the response to PSE ingestion was not influenced by apolipoprotein E phenotype.