Influence of Polyglucosamine L112 on Serum Surrogate Markers of Cholesterol Absorption

In the present study, the influence of polyglucosamine L112 on cholesterol absorption in humans is to be investigated in more detail. For this purpose, the subjects undergo two randomised study periods in a crossover design: first, there is a 2-week run-in phase, during which baseline values are collected without influence, then the subjects undergo two identical study periods, during which the subjects randomly take either polyglucosamine L112 or placebo twice a day. The study periods are separated by a two-week washout phase. After two weeks, a final examination takes place. Throughout the course of the study, lipids in the serum are measured regularly. In order to examine cholesterol absorption, however, it is not sufficient to determine the cholesterol levels in the blood, as reduced absorption is physiologically compensated for by increased endogenous synthesis. In the present study, the plant sterol campesterol, which is absorbed from the intestine like cholesterol, is determined as a surrogate marker for cholesterol absorption. At the same time, a surrogate marker for endogenous cholesterol synthesis is determined with lathosterol, which behaves like the endogenously synthesised cholesterol in terms of concentration. However, campesterol must also be set in relation to cholesterol via the campesterol-cholesterol quotient, since the concentration of campesterol is also dependent on the concentration of LDL lipoproteins as transport molecules, which reacts in the same way as the cholesterol concentration. Accordingly, a lower value of the campesterol-cholesterol quotient indicates reduced cholesterol absorption. The values corrected for total cholesterol then give an overview of the endogenous cholesterol synthesis for the cholesterol precursors, that of the plant sterols via the cholesterol resorption rate in the small intestine and that of the oxysterols via the bile acid synthesis rate.