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Leaf protein (LP) wea prepared by centrifugation the green juice from Italian ryegrass (Lolium multifiorum Lam.) at acid precipitation. LP was compared with casein and soybean protein isolate for their concentration of serum lipids and free amino acids in Wistar male rats for 2 weeks. Each protein source was incoporated into cholesterol free, low-fat diet to provide a protein level of 20%. A comparison of serum amino acids in leaf protein-fed vs. casein-fed rats showed that, glycine was the only amino acid having a higher concentration whereas concentration of other amino acids were lower in the leaf protein-fed rats compared with the casein-fed rats. further alanine was significantly lower in the leaf protein-fed rats compared with the casein0fed rats, and the protein-induced differences in glycine and alanine concentration of unfed rats were reproducible. Concentration of several amino acids, particularly valine, leucine and tyrosine, also changed when serum cholesterol concentrations varied, but these effects could not be explained by our experiments. The results suggest that a change in serum concentration of glycine and alanine of unfed rats may be related to the change in serum cholesterol concentration. these data also suggest appear to function in a similar way to soybean protein in their hypocholesterolemic action.
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