[Various features of the formation and secretion of bile acids in spontaneous atherosclerosis]

Main pathways of cholesterol catabolism were found to be dissimilar in patients with spontaneous coronary atherosclerosis accompanied by hyperlipoproteinemia as compared with healthy persons of the same age. In the patients, independently of the hyperlipoproteinemia type, a longer pathway prevailed which terminated at the step of cholic acid formation, while in healthy persons the shorter pathway was found to be discontinuous after chenodeoxycholic acid production. The specific property of cholesterol catabolism in healthy persons appears to be due to a decrease in activity of V12 alpha-hydroxylase thus protecting against development of spontaneous atherosclerosis.