Summary
Overproduction of very low-density lipoprotein apolipoprotein B by the liver is a metabolic marker for familial combined hyperlipidaemia, a common inherited disorder of lipoprotein metabolism. Four subjects with familial combined hyperlipidaemia had rates of apolipoprotein B production which were 2–7 times normal, using a protocol in which [15N]nglycine was used to label newly synthesized hepatic proteins. Following 4–6 months of therapy with lovastatin, very low-density lipoprotein apolipoprotein B production in all four subjects had returned to the normal range. This demonstrates that lovastatin, an inhibitor of cholesterol biosynthesis, acts also to reduce the apparent production rate of apolipoprotein B by the liver.
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Cortner, J.A., Bennett, M.J., Le, N.A. et al. The effect of lovastatin on very low-density lipoprotein apolipoprotein B production by the liver in familial combined hyperlipidaemia. J Inherit Metab Dis 16, 127–134 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00711326
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00711326