Naturally occurring antibodies to cholesterol: a new theory of LDL cholesterol metabolism.
Although low-density lipoprotein (LDL) receptors regulate the disposition of two-thirds of circulating serum LDL cholesterol, non-LDL receptor mechanisms account for removal of one-third. Here, Carl Alving and Nabila Wassef propose that naturally occurring antibodies to cholesterol in normal human plasma also contribute to LDL cholesterol turnover by opsonizing LDL and other lipoproteins containing 'bad' cholesterol for removal by complement receptors.
Alving
C R
CR
Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Dept of Membrane Biochemistry, Washington, DC 20307-5100, USA. carl.alving@na.amedd.army.mil
Wassef
N M
NM
D000918:Antibody Specificity; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood*; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D007113:Immunity, Innate; D007165:Immunosuppression Therapy; D008954:Models, Biological; D011973:Receptors, LDL / Q000378:metabolism
D001323:Autoantibodies; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL; D011973:Receptors, LDL; D002784:Cholesterol