Although dietary cholesterol raises plasma total and low density lipoprotein (LDL)
cholesterol concentrations, the response to a given intake of cholesterol varies enormously
among different species and even among individuals of the same species. The mechanisms
responsible for differing sensitivity to dietary cholesterol were examined by comparing the
rat, which is able to adapt to large fluctuations in sterol intake or loss with little change in
plasma LDL levels, with the hamster, where changes in sterol balance strongly influence …