Hypocholesterolemic effect of alisol A-24-monoacetate and its related compounds in rats.

The rhizoma of Alisma Plantago-aquatica L. var. orientate Samuels used as a component of various preparations of Chinese medicine has long been accepted to have a diuretic effect. The availability of this plant as a pulver in the preparations is a good contrast concerning the presence of practically water insoluble triterpenes to many of the raw plants usually used as a decoctum. Several years ago the extract of this plant with organic sol vents was demonstrated to exert a lipotropic effect, which was somewhat different in mode of action from those of other lipotropic agents (1), Further chemical studies on this extract succeeded to isolate the active triterpenes including alisol A-24-monoacetate (ALMA) and its related compounds (2, 3). The present paper describes mainly the hypocholes terolemic activity in the rats maintained on an atherogenic diet.