Studies on Egg Yolk Cholesterol

THE earliest reports in the literature of dietary induced changes in egg yolk cholesterol were provided by Dam (1928 Dam (1929). By feeding free cholesterol (1 gm. daily), he obtained an elevation of about 20% in the yolk cholesterol level, and upon the feeding of 3 gm. of “cholesterylpalmitat,” he observed an increase in yolk cholesterol of from 8 to 16%, followed by a decline of about 12% upon cessation of the dietary source. Quite recently Leveille and Fisher (1958) and Combs and Helbacka (1960) demonstrated that diets containing 10% corn oil increased yolk cholesterol whereas 10% animal fat did not effect yolk cholesterol level. Wood et al. (1961) have shown a marked elevation in yolk cholesterol with the addition of 1% cholesterol to the diet and noted that the presence of 10% corn oil in the diet enhanced this increase. On the other hand, Kurnick et al. (1958) did not …