Cholesterol

This study's aim was to test the low-density lipoprotein cholesterol- (LDL-c-) lowering efficacy of biscuits containing 2 g of plant stanols, which corresponded to 3.4 g of plant stanol esters. The biscuit is a new food format that can be consumed as a snack. In a double-blind, placebo-controlled parallel design study, 119 mildly to moderately hypercholesterolemic volunteers were randomized to plant stanol or control groups. Subjects were comparable in age, gender, lipid profiles, and body mass index. They consumed a control biscuit once a day for a two-week period, followed by a four-week intervention period that either had a plant stanol ester biscuit or a control...

Introduction. There are a few evidences about targeting isoprenoids biosynthesis pathway in bacteria for finding new antibiotics. This study was conducted to assess antibacterial effects of vanadyl sulfate (VS), one of the mevalonate kinase inhibitors to find a new target for killing bacteria. Materials and Methods. Antibacterial effect of VS alone and in combination with glycine or EDTA was assessed on Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa as Gram-negative and Staphylococcus aureus and Enterococcus faecalis as Gram-positive bacteria using serial dilution method and minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) identified...

Hypertriglyceridemia (HTG) is a feature of numerous metabolic disorders including dyslipidemias, metabolic syndrome, and diabetes mellitus type 2 and can increase the risk of premature coronary artery disease. HTG may also be due to genetic factors (called primary HTG) and particularly the severe/extreme HTG (SEHTG), which is a usually rare genetic disorder. Even rarer are secondary cases of SEHTG caused by autoimmune disease. This review considers the causes of SEHTG, and their management including treatment with low density lipoprotein apheresis and analyzes the original findings...

Statins are the most widely prescribed and effective medication for reducing low density lipoprotein cholesterol. Statins may also lower resting blood pressure (BP); however, results are inconsistent. We sought to determine if the maximum dose of atorvastatin reduces resting BP and the peak systolic BP (SBP) achieved on a graded exercise stress test (GEST) among a large sample of 419 healthy men (48%) and women (52%). Subjects (419, 44.1 ± 0.8 yr) were double-blinded and randomized to 80 mg·d(-1) of atorvastatin (n = 202) or placebo (n = 217) for 6 mo...

Increasing evidence suggests that erythrocytes may participate in atherogenesis. We sought to investigate whether the total cholesterol content of erythrocyte membranes (CEM) is significantly different in patients with stable coronary artery disease (CAD) compared to patients with nonsignificant coronary stenosis and determine the correlation between CEM and the severity of coronary stenosis. Methods. The population included 144 patients, undergoing clinically indicated coronary angiography. The severity of coronary stenosis was scored after coronary angiography and patients were divided into two groups; the S-stenosis group (CAD patients, n = 82) had a significant stenosis indicated by coronary angiography and the second group, N-stenosis (n = 62), had nonsignificant coronary stenosis...

Disease phenotypes and defects in function can be traced to nonsynonymous single nucleotide polymorphisms (nsSNPs), which are important indicators of action sites and effective potential therapeutic approaches. Identification of deleterious nsSNPs is crucial to characterize the genetic basis of diseases, assess individual susceptibility to disease, determinate molecular and therapeutic targets, and predict clinical phenotypes. In this study using PolyPhen2 and MutPred in silico algorithms, we analyzed the genetic variations that can alter the expression and function of the ABCA1 gene that causes the allelic disorders familial hypoalphalipoproteinemia and Tangier disease...

Diabetes mellitus is associated with dysregulation of adipose tissue metabolism and increased level of serum lipids. In our previous work we found that Securigera securidaca decreases cholesterol level in blood of diabetic rats. The present study was carried out to further investigate the effects of this plant on lipid metabolism, lipolysis, and adipogenesis, in diabetic rats. Female Wistar rats were rendered diabetic by intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin. Retroperitoneal adipose tissue was removed from diabetic animals after seven days of streptozotocin injection...

Our current understanding of oxysterol metabolism during different disease states such as obesity and dyslipidemia is limited. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the effect of diet-induced obesity on the tissue distribution of various oxysterols and the mRNA expression of key enzymes involved in oxysterol metabolism. To induce obesity, male C57BL/6J mice were fed a high fat-cholesterol diet for 24 weeks. Following diet-induced obesity, plasma levels of 4 β -hydroxycholesterol, 5,6 α -epoxycholesterol, 5,6 β -epoxycholesterol, 7 α -hydroxycholesterol, 7 β -hydroxycholesterol, and 27-hydroxycholesterol were significantly (P < 0...

Currently, the Friedewald formula (FF) is the main method for evaluating low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c). Recently, many limitations have emerged regarding its use, including patients with triglyceride levels ≥400 mg/dL, diabetes mellitus, and kidney or hepatic chronic diseases. We analyzed the use of the FF in patients with metabolic syndrome. We selected patients with known metabolic syndrome that fulfilled the National Cholesterol Education Program Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults (Adult Treatment Panel III) Final Report and excluded patients with triglyceride levels ≥400 mg/dL and chronic liver and/or kidney disease...

Introduction. The objective of this study was to clarify how pitavastatin affects glucose and lipid metabolism, renal function, and oxidative stress. Methods. Ten Japanese men (average age of 33.9 years) were orally administered 2 mg of pitavastatin for 4 weeks. Postprandial glucose, lipoprotein metabolism, and oxidative stress markers were evaluated at 0 and 4 weeks of pitavastatin treatment (2 mg once daily) with a test meal consisting of total calories: 460 kcal, carbohydrates: 56.5 g (226 kcal), protein: 18 g (72 kcal), lipids: 18 g (162 kcal), and NaCl: 1...

Objectives. This study aims to analysis the relationship between c.-492T>C polymorphism in APOA2 gene and the risk for obesity in a sample of Egyptian adolescents and investigates its effect on body fat distribution and lipid metabolism. Material and Methods. A descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted on 303 adolescents. They were 196 obese and 107 nonobese, aged 16-19 years old. Variables examined included body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist to hip ratio (WHR), systolic and diastolic blood pressure (BP), body fat percentage (BF%), abdominal visceral fat layer, and dietary intake...

The endothelium is the primary target for biochemical or mechanical injuries caused by the putative risk factors of atherosclerosis. Endothelial dysfunction represents the ultimate link between atherosclerotic risk factors that promote atherosclerosis. HDL-C is thought to exert at least some parts of its antiatherogenic facilities via stimulating endothelial NO production, nearby inhibiting oxidative stress and inflammation. HDL-C is capable of opposing LDL's inductive effects and avoiding the ox-LDL's inhibition of eNOS...

The cholesterol-lowering efficacy of plant stanol ester (STAEST) added to fat- or milk-based products is well documented. However, their efficacy when added to nondairy liquid drinks is less certain. Therefore, we have investigated the cholesterol-lowering efficacy of STAEST added to a soymilk-based minidrink in the hypercholesterolemic subjects. In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled parallel study, the intervention group (n = 27) consumed 2.7 g/d of plant stanols as the ester in soymilk-based minidrink (65 mL/d) with the control group (n = 29) receiving the same drink without added plant stanols once a day with a meal for 4 weeks...

Introduction. Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) is an inherited disorder associated with a severely increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Although DNA test results in FH are associated with important medical and ethical consequences, data on accuracy of genetic tests is scarce. Methods. Therefore, we performed a prospective study to assess the overall accuracy of the DNA test used in the genetic cascade screening program for FH in The Netherlands. Individuals aged 18 years and older tested for one of the 5 most prevalent FH mutations, were included consecutively...

This review aims to provide an overview on the properties of high-density lipoproteins (HDLs) and their cardioprotective effects. Emergent HDL therapies will be presented in the context of the current understanding of HDL function, metabolism, and protective antiatherosclerotic properties. The epidemiological association between levels of HDL-C or its major apolipoprotein (apoA-I) is strong, graded, and coherent across populations. HDL particles mediate cellular cholesterol efflux, have antioxidant properties, and modulate vascular inflammation and vasomotor function and thrombosis...

To evaluate whether parameters of obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) associate with cholesterol metabolism before and after weight reduction, 42 middle-aged overweight subjects with mild OSA were randomised to intensive lifestyle intervention (N = 23) or to control group (N = 18) with routine lifestyle counselling only. Cholesterol metabolism was evaluated with serum noncholesterol sterol ratios to cholesterol, surrogate markers of cholesterol absorption (cholestanol and plant sterols) and synthesis (cholestenol, desmosterol, and lathosterol) at baseline and after 1-year intervention...

Leishmania major infection of resistant mice causes a self-limited lesion characterized by macrophage activation and a Th1 proinflammatory response. Atherosclerosis is an inflammatory disease involving hypercholesterolemia and macrophage activation. In this study, we evaluated the influence of L. major infection on the development of atherosclerosis using atherosclerosis-susceptible apolipoprotein E-deficient (apoE KO) mice. After 6 weeks of infection, apoE KO mice exhibited reduced footpad swelling and parasitemia similar to C57BL/6 controls, confirming that both strains are resistant to infection with L...

Objective. To determine if non-HDL cholesterol (N-HDL) and directly measured LDL cholesterol (D-LDL) are clinically equivalent measurements. Patients and Methods. Eighty-one subjects recruited for 2 cholesterol treatment studies had at least 1 complete fasting lipid panel and D-LDL performed simultaneously; 64 had a second assessment after 4 to 6 weeks, resulting in 145 triads of C-LDL, D-LDL, and N-HDL. To directly compare N-HDL to D-LDL and C-LDL, we normalized the N-HDL by subtracting 30 from the N-HDL (N-HDLA)...

Cholesterol gallstone disease, one of the commonest digestive diseases in western countries, is induced by an imbalance in cholesterol metabolism, which involves intestinal absorption, hepatic biosynthesis, and biliary output of cholesterol, and its conversion to bile acids. Several components of the metabolic syndrome (e.g., obesity, type 2 diabetes, dyslipidemia, and hyperinsulinemia) are also well-known risk factors for gallstones, suggesting the existence of interplay between common pathophysiological pathways influenced by insulin resistance, genetic, epigenetic, and environmental factors...

This study aimed to investigate whether body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), or waist to hip ratio (WHR) could be a better predictor of metabolic syndrome and, if so, what would be the cutoff points for these surrogates to appropriately differentiate metabolic syndrome in different age and sex subgroups. Methods. The present cross-sectional study was conducted on a sample of Isfahan Cohort Study (ICS). In total, 468 individuals (194 with and 274 subjects without metabolic syndrome) according to the National Cholesterol Education Program's Adult Treatment Panel III (ATP-III) criteria were selected...