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A Review of the Clinical Pharmacology of Pelacarsen: A Lipoprotein(a)-Lowering Agent

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A Correction to this article was published on 11 December 2021

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Abstract

Patients with genetically associated elevated lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] levels are at greater risk for coronary artery disease, heart attack, stroke, and peripheral arterial disease. To date, there are no US FDA-approved drug therapies that are designed to target Lp(a) with the goal of lowering the Lp(a) level in patients who have increased risk. The American College of Cardiology (ACC) has provided guidelines on how to use traditional lipid profiles to assess the risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD); however, even with the emergence of statin add-on therapies such as ezetimibe and proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) inhibitors, some populations with elevated Lp(a) biomarkers remain at an increased risk for cardiovascular (CV) disease. Residual CV risk has led researchers to inquire about how lowering Lp(a) can be used as a potential preventative therapy in reducing CV events. This review aims to present and discuss the current clinical and scientific evidence pertaining to pelacarsen.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. East Coast Institute for Research, Jacksonville, FL, USA

    Jennifer Hardy, Stephanie Niman, Rebecca F. Goldfaden, Heather Hartmann & Rushab Choksi

  2. Ashchi Heart and Vascular Center, Jacksonville, FL, USA

    Majdi Ashchi & Mohannad Bisharat

  3. College of Pharmacy, University of Florida, Jacksonville, FL, USA

    Jessica Huston

Authors
  1. Jennifer Hardy
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  2. Stephanie Niman
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  3. Rebecca F. Goldfaden
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Rebecca F. Goldfaden.

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No external funding was used in the preparation of this manuscript.

Conflicts of interest

Jennifer Hardy, Stephanie Niman, Rebecca F. Goldfaden, Majdi Ashchi, Mohannad Bisharat, Jessica Huston, Heather Hartmann, and Rushab Choksi declare they have no conflicts of interest that might be relevant to this manuscript.

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Author contributions

All authors contributed to the review. Rebecca Goldfaden had the idea for the article; Jennifer Hardy, Stephanie Niman, and Heather Hartmann performed the literature search and data analysis; and all authors drafted and/or critically revised the review. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Additional information

The original Online version of this article was revised: The Figure 2 was inadvertently published as Figure 2a and 2b.

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Hardy, J., Niman, S., Goldfaden, R.F. et al. A Review of the Clinical Pharmacology of Pelacarsen: A Lipoprotein(a)-Lowering Agent. Am J Cardiovasc Drugs 22, 47–54 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40256-021-00499-1

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