Table 4. Clinical Trials and In Vivo Studies Reported on the Hypolipidemic Effect of Pectin (PC)^a.

study	subject	dose of PC	results	ref
clinical trial	randomized trial applied on 53 healthy humans	diet contains 4.11 g of soluble fiber (PC, gums, and mucilage) and 25.08 g of insoluble fiber for 3 months	↓ LDL (12.8%) and glucose (12.3%)	(108)
	placebo controlled, randomized, parallel double blind study applied on 66 diabetic patients	sugar beet PC, 12 weeks	fasting plasma glucose concentration did not change; ↑ HbA1c and HDL significantly	(109)
	crossover studies applied on hypercholesterolemic patients	15 g of apple low MW PC for 4 weeks; 6 g/day citrus and high MW PC for 3 weeks	apple PC reduced LDL by 7–10%, while citrus PC reduced LDL by 6–7%	(106)
in vivo	male Sprague–Dawley rats	diet containing 15% fat and 6% PC	↓ TC, V-LDL, and LDL; ↑ HDL and CoA reductase activity	(110, 111)
	hamsters	high cholesterol (0.1% w/w) diets plus 3% lemon PC for 8 weeks	↓ TC	(112)
	male Wistar rats	diet containing 5 g/100 g apple PC and 10 g/100 g high polyphenol freeze-dried apple for 21 days	↓ TC, TG, and cholesterol absorption (13%)	(113)
	male rats	high cholesterol diet containing PC (60 g/kg) for 4 weeks	↓ TC (from 2.08 to 1.67 μmol/mL)	(114)
	female Zucker fatty rats as a model of genetic obesity	diet containing 10% PC for 15 weeks	↓ BW, TC, and TG	(115)
	laying hens	diet containing 0.5% PC	↓ egg yolk cholesterol	(116)
	hypercholesterolemic swine	diet containing 30 g of PC daily for 4 weeks	↓ LDL and TG	(117)
	diabetic rats	0.5–25 mg/kg orally for 5 successive days	↓ TG and blood glucose	(118)
	hypercholesterolemic rats	diets containing 5% of PC for 6 weeks	↓ TC	(119)
	hypercholesterolemic New Zealand rabbits	combination of PC, niacin, and apple cider vinegar 3 mL/kg/day for 4 weeks	↓ TC, LDL, and TG; ↑ HDL	(120)
	hypercholesterolemic rats	diet containing pea proteins (90%) and apple pectin (7.5%)	↑ CYP7A1 and NTCP genes, which were involved in cholesterol turnover	(121)
	male Wistar rats	High fat diet plus GG with low, medium, or high viscosity degree (1%, w/v) and two different doses of PC (24%, LM or 70%, HM) for 3 weeks	both PC and GG ↓ TC, BG, and liver steatosis but to varying extent depending on degree of methoxylation and viscosity of fibers; only GG with medium and high viscosities ↑ levels of butyric acid in cecum and blood	(122)
	hypercholesterolemic rats	diet supplemented with PC pectin (5 wt %/wt) for 6 weeks	↓ BW, TC, TG, and development of adipose tissue	(123)
	diabetic rats	diet containing citrus PC, 4 weeks	↓ TC, LDL, TC, insulin resistance, and BG levels	(124)
	hypercholesterolemic mice	ε-polylysine and PC for 13 weeks	↓ TC and TG	(125)
	hypercholesterolemic mice	high fat diet containing 4 or 8% of PC for 12 weeks	↓ BW, TC, and LDL in a dose dependent manner	(126)
	male mice	high cholesterol diet containing 20 wt %/wt PC for 12 weeks	↓ cholesterol absorption	(127)
	male C57BL/6 mice	high fat diet and 200 mg/kg/day PC orally for 17 weeks	↓ TC, LDL, leptin, and adiponectin	(128)

^aHbA1c, glycosylated hemoglobin; TC, total cholesterol; TG, triglycerides; HDL, high density lipoprotein; LDL, low density lipoprotein; V-LDL, very low density lipoprotein; BW, body weight; BG, blood glucose; LM, low methoxylation; HM, high methoxylation.