Hypertriglyceridemia is associated with preβ-HDL concentrations in subjects with familial low HDL

Abstract

Preβ-HDL particles act as the primary acceptors of cellular cholesterol in reverse cholesterol transport (RCT). An impairment of RCT may be the reason for the increased risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) in subjects with familial low HDL. We studied the levels of serum preβ-HDL and the major regulating factors of HDL metabolism in 67 subjects with familial low HDL and in 64 normolipidemic subjects. We report that the subjects with familial low HDL had markedly reduced pre-HDL concentrations compared with the normolipidemic subjects (17.4 ± 7.2 vs. 23.4 ± 7.8 mg apolipoprotein A-I/dl; P < 0.001). A positive correlation was observed between preβ-HDL concentration and serum triglyceride (TG) level (r = 0.334, P = 0.006). In addition, serum TG level was found to be the strongest predictor of preβ-HDL concentration in subjects with familial low HDL. The activities of cholesteryl ester transfer protein and hepatic lipase were markedly increased in subjects with familial low HDL without a significant correlation to preβ-HDL concentration. Our results support the hypothesis that impaired RCT is one mechanism behind the increased risk for CHD in subjects with familial low HDL. Copyright © 2005 by the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.