Effect of Fermented Barley Fiber on Accumulation of Liver Lipids in Rats

Abstract

We investigated that effects of fermented barley fiber (FBF) prepared from barley shochu lees, which was produced in manufacturing barley shochu, on lipid metabolism in rats. FBF contains about 50% of dietary fiber. The components of dietary fiber were hemicellulose, cellulose and lignin. Rats were fed on a relatively high-fat diet which contains 10% of lard, and 5% or 10% of FBF. FBF did not affect the levels of serum lipids. However, the concentrations of total lipids, triacylglycerol, and cholesterol in the liver were decreased by fed a FBF-containing diet. In another experiment, we fed a diet containing 20% of FBF with 1 % of orotic acid to rats. FBF prevented the accumulation of lipids in the liver and normalized the levels of serum lipids induced by orotic acid. From these results FBF was considered to possess the improvement effects on the accumulation of lipids in the liver.