| Abstract | Whey preparations prepared from cultured milk by 19 Lactobacillus (2 species) and 20 Bifidobacterium (5 species) strains were examined for the effects of secretion and synthesis of bile acids in primary cultured rat hepatocytes. The stimulating effect of whey preparation on bile acid secretion depended on the species as well as the strains used for milk fermentation. Two strains belonging to L. casei SBT 2230 (LC2230) and B. longum SBT 2912 (BL2912) produced the whey which stimulates both the secretion of bile acid and the activity of cholesterol 7?-hydroxyl-ase, a rate-limiting enzyme for bile acid synthesis. When the cultured products by these two strains were given to rats for 14 days, the products from L. casei (LC2230) were found to stimulate the biliary secretion of bile acids. These results suggest that primary cultured hepatocytes were a useful experimental system as an initial screening for an active principle modulating cholesterol metabolism. |