Guinea pigs: A suitable animal model to study lipoprotein metabolism,
atherosclerosis and inflammation
Maria Luz Fernandez  and Jeff S Volek

Nutrition & Metabolism 2006, 3:17     doi:10.1186/1743-7075-3-17

     Published   27 March 2006

Abstract (provisional)

Numerous animal models have been used to study diet effects on cholesterol
and lipoprotein metabolism. However, most of those models differ from humans
in the plasma distribution of cholesterol and in the processing of
lipoproteins in the plasma compartment. Although transgenic or knock-out
mice have been used to study a specific pathway involved in cholesterol
metabolism, these data are of limited use because other metabolic pathways
and responses to interventions may differ from the human condition.
Carbohydrate restricted diets have been shown to reduce plasma
triglycerides, increase HDL cholesterol and promote the formation of larger,
less atherogenic LDL. However, the mechanisms behind these responses and the
relation to atherosclerotic events in the aorta have not been explored in
detail due to the lack of an appropriate animal model. Guinea pigs carry the
majority of the cholesterol in LDL and possess cholesterol ester transfer
protein and lipoprotein lipase activities, which results in reverse
cholesterol transport and delipidation cascades equivalent to the human
situation. Further, carbohydrate restriction has been shown to alter the
distribution of LDL subfractions, to decrease cholesterol accumulation in
aortas and to decrease aortic cytokine expression. It is the purpose of this
review to discuss the use of guinea pigs as useful models to evaluate diet
effects on lipoprotein metabolism, atherosclerosis and inflammation with an
emphasis on carbohydrate restricted diets.

http://www.nutritionandmetabolism.com/content/3/1/17