Effects of Coffee Consumption on Oxidative Susceptibility of Low-Density Lipoproteins and Serum Lipid Levels in Humans

G. S. Yukawa¹, M. Mune¹, H. Otani¹, Y. Tone¹, X.-M. Liang¹, H. Iwahashi², and W. Sakamoto^3*

¹Third Department of Internal Medicine, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama 640, Japan

²Department of Chemistry, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama 640, Japan

³Department of Biochemistry, School of Dentistry, Hokkaido University, Sapporo 060, Japan; fax: +81-11-706-4232; E-mail: sakamoto@den.hokudai.ac.jp

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed.

Received April 30, 2003

---

Since little is known about how coffee intake affects low-density lipoprotein (LDL) oxidative susceptibility and serum lipid levels, we conducted an in vivo study in 11 healthy male students of Wakayama Medical University aged between 20 and 31 years fed an average Japanese diet. On days 1-7 of the study, the subjects drank mineral water. On day 7, the subjects began drinking coffee, 24 g total per day, for one week. This was followed by a one week “washout period” during which mineral water was consumed. Fasting peripheral venous blood samples were taken at the end of each one-week period. LDL oxidation lag time was approximately 8% greater (p < 0.01) after the coffee drinking period than the other periods. Serum levels of total cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol (LDL-C) and malondialdehyde (MDA) as thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) were significantly decreased after the coffee drinking period. Finally, regular coffee ingestion may favorably affect cardiovascular risk status by modestly reducing LDL oxidation susceptibility and decreasing LDL-cholesterol and MDA levels.

---

KEY WORDS: coffee, oxidative susceptibility of LDL, lag time, serum lipids, malondialdehyde

---