Protective effect of selenium and vitamin E against changes induced in heart vessels of rabbits fed chronically on a high-fat diet.

The effect of selenium and vitamin E on lipid level in the blood serum, on the oxygen free radicals generation and on morphology of heart was tested after separate and combined administration to mongrel male rabbits fed on a high-fat diet (HFD). The lipid level and oxygen free radical generation was depressed markedly in animals fed on a HFD and receiving simultaneously selenium and vitamin E. In animals on a HFD the walls of the heart vessels were thickened, always to their complete obliteration. The presence of lipid droplets in endocardium could be observed as well. The hearts of the rabbits receiving selenium showed markedly fewer atheromatously changed vessels. Moreover, no accumulation of lipid droplets was seen in the endocardium of these animals. The least atherosclerotic alterations were observed in the myocardium of rabbits given HFD with addition of selenium and vitamin E in combination, no accumulation of lipids was shown in endocardium of these rabbits. An important finding of this study is, that the combination of selenium and vitamin E results in an intensified protective effect against changes evoked in the heart muscle of rabbits fed on a HFD.