The Effects of Astaxanthin Supplements on Lipid Peroxidation and Antioxidant Status in Postmenopausal Women

In postmenopausal women, the incidence of cardiovascular disease(CVD) is common and there is growing evidences that astaxanthin has a strong antioxidant capacity and plays a beneficial role in the prevention of CVD. However, current data are not sufficient to determine the effect of astaxanthin on improving lipid profiles and antioxidant capacity in human. In this study, 15 healthy postmenopausal women were divided into 3 groups and given astaxanthin supplements of 0,2 or 8mg/day for 8 weeks. Blood samples were taken before and after 4 and 8 weeks of astaxanthin supplementation for analysis of serum total choelsterol, LDL-cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, triglyceride, plasma TBARS, total antioxidant status(TAS) and urinary 8-isoprostanes. HDL-cholesterollevels in 2mg and 8mg group increased significantly after 8 weeks from 50.6$\pm$5.8 to 60.4$\pm$7.1mg/dl, 44.4$\pm$10.7 to 49.4$\pm$2.7$mg/dl$ respectively (p<0.05). In the 2mg group, triglyceride decreased significantly from 171.6$\pm$67.4 mg/$dl$ to 145.8$\pm$5.1$mg/dl$ (p<0.05). Plasma TBARS level in the 2mg group decreased from 1.42$\pm$0.18nM/mg to 1.13$\pm$0.18nM/mg after 8 weeks (p<0.05). In the 8mg group, TBARS level decreased significantly from 1.62$\pm$0.14nM/mg to 1.13$\pm$0.12nM/mg after 8 weeks (p<0.05). TAS, as an indicator of lipid peroxidation, increased significantly from 0.85$\pm$0.42mM/$l$ to 1.90$\pm$0.58mM$l$ after 8 weeks in the 8mg group (p<0.05). Urinary 8-isoprostanes excretion did not decrease significantly with astaxanthin supplementation. In conclusion, it would be helpful for postmenopausal women with common cardiovascular disease to supplement with astaxanthin as an antioxidant.