Physiological Study of Human Cholesterol Metabolism and Excretion

Summary

The underlying hypothesis is that whole body cholesterol - including cholesterol present in tissues that cannot be measured by standard blood tests - is related to heart disease risk. Endogenous cholesterol will be labeled with an intravenous infusion of one type of cholesterol tracer and dietary cholesterol will be labeled with another. These tracers will be used to measure how fast cholesterol is synthesized and excreted using mass spectrometry to distinguish the tracers. Data will be related to circulating biomarkers (blood tests) and to the thickness of the lining of the carotid artery. The effect of the drug ezetimibe on these processes will also be determined. Successful completion of this study will give us more knowledge about cholesterol metabolism that may be useful in designing new drugs and treatments for patients with heart disease, especially those that are already receiving maximum amounts of current medications.

Timeline

Start

2014-01

Primary completion

2015-06

Completion

2015-06

Publications

• Lin X, Racette SB, Ma L, Wallendorf M, Davila-Roman VG, Ostlund RE Jr. Endogenous Cholesterol Excretion Is Negatively Associated With Carotid Intima-Media Thickness in Humans. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2017 Dec;37(12):2364-2369. doi: 10.1161/ATVBAHA.117.310081. Epub 2017 Oct 5.
• Lin X, Racette SB, Ma L, Wallendorf M, Ostlund RE Jr. Ezetimibe Increases Endogenous Cholesterol Excretion in Humans. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2017 May;37(5):990-996. doi: 10.1161/ATVBAHA.117.309119. Epub 2017 Mar 9.

Drugs

Indications