Human HDL containing a novel apoC-I isoform induces smooth muscle cell apoptosis.

Aims: We discovered that some adults with coronary heart disease (CHD) have a high density lipoprotein (HDL) subclass which induces human aortic smooth muscle cell (ASMC) apoptosis in vitro. The purpose of this investigation was to determine what properties differentiate apoptotic and non-apoptotic HDL subclasses in adults with and without CHD.

Methods And Results: Density gradient ultracentrifugation was used to measure the particle density distribution and to isolate two HDL subclass fractions, HDL2 and HDL3, from 21 individuals, including 12 without CHD.

Mobilization of ectopic yolk in Gallus gallus domesticus: a novel reverse lipid transport process.

In many oviparous animals, bursting type atresia of ovarian follicles occurs during the reproductive cycle, resulting in the escape of yolk into the extracellular compartment. In birds, this ectopic yolk is rapidly cleared by an unknown process that involves the appearance of yolk-engorged macrophage-like cells. To study this unique type of lipid transport, we injected young male chickens intra-abdominally with egg yolk.

Developing high performance lipoprotein density profiling for use in clinical studies relating to cardiovascular disease.

Early detection of the beginning stage of cardiovascular disease (CVD) is an approach to prevention because the process is reversible at this stage. Consequently, several methods for screening for CVD have been introduced in recent years incorporating different analytical methods for characterizing the population of blood-borne lipoprotein subclasses. The gold standard method for lipoprotein subclassification is based on lipoprotein density measured by sedimentation equilibrium using the ultracentrifuge.