The Veterinary Resources Branch, Division of Research Services established a Watanabe Heritable Hyperlipidemic Rabbit (WHHL) breeding colony to be used as a resource for investigators requiring the use of this animal model. The colony is being characterized for serum total cholesterol, cholesterol levels of the lipoprotein fractions and serum triglyceride levels. Blood is being collected from rabbits at the following ages; six weeks, three months, seven months, and one year. Total serum cholesterol values ranged from 310 to 1251 mg/dl with a mean of 828 mg/dl. The low density lipoprotein cholesterol values ranges from to 1185 mg/dl with a mean of 630 mg/dl. The serum triglyceride values ranged from 107 to 959 mg/dl with a mean of 394 mg/dl.
