Effects of hypercholesterolemia and onions on rheology of blood in rabbits

An investigation has been made on the variation of the rheological parameters during induced hypercholesterolemia in rabbits. The animals were divided into three groups and were fed with control (Group I), Cholesterol (0.5 %) (Group II) and Cholesterol (0.5 %) plus extract of 20g fresh onions (Group III) diets. The samples of blood were collected up to six months. Blood viscosity, plasma viscosity, and ESR are higher in Group II than in Group I, whereas, for Group III blood viscosity, PCV, and plasma viscosity are higher than that of Group II. The erythrocytes shape in Group II shows crenation of its membrane, whereas, for Group III the shape is comparable with the normal shape of Group I, even though the cholesterol levels are comparable. Various factors which may be contributing towards the variation in blood rheology of these groups are discussed. © 1980.