Figure 3.

Involvement of NPC1L1 in intestinal sphingomyelin absorption. Sphingomyelin (SM) absorption was examined in 10–12 weeks-old male Npc1l1^WT (WT) and Npc1l1^KO (KO) mice treated with (+) or without (−) 0.45 mg/kg ezetimibe (Eze). [³H] SM concentrations in the plasma, liver, and plasma plus liver [sum of the data from the first (plasma) and second (liver) graphs] were examined 2 h after administration of [³H] SM-containing emulsion. Bar graphs represent the mean ± S.D. Each dot on the bar graphs represents data from a single mouse (n = 5–11). ** p < 0.01, significant difference by Dunnett’s test between WT mice and KO mice without ezetimibe treatment. † p < 0.05, †† p < 0.01, significant differences by Dunnett’s test comparing two groups [Eze (−) and Eze (+)]. N.S., no significant difference between groups.