Medical research

Cholesterol-lowering drugs reduce brown adipose tissue

ETH Zurich scientists have shown that statins, one of the most commonly prescribed classes of pharmaceuticals, reduce beneficial brown adipose tissue. But this is no reason to demonise these drugs, the researchers insist.

Cardiology

Cholesterol drug shows promise to help reverse heart disease

For the first time, a new drug given along with a cholesterol-lowering statin medicine has proved able to shrink plaque that is clogging arteries, potentially giving a way to undo some of the damage of heart disease.

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Low-density lipoprotein

Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) is a type of lipoprotein that transports cholesterol and triglycerides from the liver to peripheral tissues. LDL is one of the five major groups of lipoproteins; these groups include chylomicrons, very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), intermediate-density lipoprotein (IDL), low-density lipoprotein, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL), although some alternative organizational schemes have been proposed. Like all lipoproteins, LDL enables fats and cholesterol to move within the water-based solution of the blood stream. LDL also regulates cholesterol synthesis at these sites. It is used medically as part of a cholesterol blood test, and since high levels of LDL cholesterol can signal medical problems like cardiovascular disease, it is sometimes called "bad cholesterol," (as opposed to HDL, which is frequently referred to as "good cholesterol" or "healthy cholesterol").

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