Effects of orally administered liposomes with soybean-derived sterols and their glucosides on rat body weight.

The effects on Wistar rat body weight were examined after a single subcutaneous (s.c.) or oral (p.o.) administration of dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) liposomes composed of soybean-derived sterols (SS) and their glucosides (SG) with or without entrapping recombinant human erythropoietin (Epo) for 1 week. Body weight increased significantly after both types of administration compared with the control groups irrespective of the existence of Epo. The neutral lipid concentration in plasma increased with the increase in body weight whereas the total contents of cholesterol and high density lipoprotein cholesterol in the plasma did not change significantly. The SS and SG suspensions following p.o. administration, however, did not alter the body weight. These findings suggest that liposomal SS and SG may be absorbed through the intestinal membrane and induce a change in the uptake of lipid, in contrast to the suspension state. SS in liposomes significantly increased body weight more than SG after p.o. administration.