RESUMEN
The hypocholesterolemic effect of grape seed, skin and leaf extract has been investigated in six groups of seven rats each weighing 75 +/- 5 g. The first group was a control [-ve] while the others were fed on hypercholesterolemic diet and reclassified into control [+ve], seed, skin, leaf and mixture of extracts rat groups. The extract was administered daily as aqueous solution using intragastric tube in the form of 105 mg extract/kg body weight for 30 days. Compared with the control [-ye] group, the control [-ve] group showed significant decrease in final weight, weight gain, food intake, FER, HDLc, total protein, globulin, GPx and SOD but the levels of TC, TG, LDL-c, VLDL-c, total lipid, phospholipids, atherogenic indices, ALT, AST, alkaline phosphatase and also liver TC, total lipids and MDA were significantly increased. On the other side, the levels of LDL-c, LDL-c/HDLc, ALT, AST and alkaline phosphatase were significantly increased in grape seed, skin, leaf and mixture extract groups while grape leaf extract group showed significant decrease in FER and phospholipids. In comparison with control [+ve] group, there were significant increase in final weight, weight gain, food intake, food efficiency ratio, serum HDLc, total protein, globulin, GPx and SOD but significant decrease of serum TC, TG, LDLc, VLDLc, total lipids, phospholipids, atherogenic indices, ALT, AST and alkaline phosphatase and liver TC, total lipids and MDA in grape seed, skin and leaf extract groups. Histopathological examination of rat liver and heart from grape seeds, leaf and mixture rat groups showed no histopathological changes