ABSTRACT
Adolescent male New Zealand White rabbits (3000-4000 g) were housed in the rabbit facility at the Sun Health Research Institute, operating under the guidelines of the United States Department of Agriculture, with a 12 : 12 light/dark cycle, at 67 ± 7°F (19 ± 8°C and 45-50% humidity. Animals were randomly assigned to one of the six groups. Control and cholesterol diets were commercially obtained from Purina Mills, Inc. (Laboratory Rabbit Diet with and without 2% cholesterol). Dietary food intake was limited to one cup per day (8 oz) and ad libitum water consumption varied between 32 and 40 oz/day. Each of the animals in the six groups received daily injections of sterile isotonic saline, as part of a preclinical drug study not reported on herein.
