Courtney Millar

Ms. Courtney Millar


Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

8Years (2019-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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21 May 2019 in Nutrients
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
CMCourtney Millar
Courtney Millar
GNGregory H. Norris
Gregory H. Norris
AVAddison Vitols
Addison Vitols
CGChelsea Marie Garcia
Chelsea Marie Garcia
SSSamantha Seibel
Samantha Seibel
Christopher BlessoChristopher Blesso
Christopher Blesso
Western-style diets have been linked with dyslipidemia and inflammation, two well-known risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD). Dietary sphingomyelin (SM) has been reported to modulate gut microbiota, and lower serum lipids and inflammation in mice on Western-style diets. However, few studies have examined if nutritionally-relevant intake of dietary SM can impact atherosclerosis progression. Thus, the aim of this study was to determine if incorporating 0.1% (w/w) egg SM (ESM) (equivalent to ~750 mg/day in humans) into a high-fat (45% kcal), cholesterol-enriched diet (HFD) could prevent atheroprogression in apoE−/− mice (n = 15/group). We found that mice fed with the ESM-rich diet had significantly lower epididymal fat mass (−46%) and tended to have higher spleen weights (+15%). There were no significant differences in serum lipids between groups. However, ESM-fed mice had significantly lower alanine aminotransferase (ALT) activity. Additionally, ESM-fed mice displayed significantly less aortic root lipid accumulation (−31%) compared to controls. This improvement in atherosclerosis was paired with over a two-fold reduction in circulating serum amyloid A (SAA) in ESM-fed mice. Finally, there was also a modulation of the gut microbiota with ESM supplementation. ESM may have the potential to prevent atherosclerosis, however further research in the clinical setting is warranted.