Severe hypertriglyceridemia, large lipoproteins and protection against atherosclerosis

Alloxan-diabetic cholesterol-fed rabbits exhibiting severe hypertriglyceridemia are protected against atherosclerosis. In such rabbits most of the plasma cholesterol is found in lipoproteins with a diameter of 75 nm or larger. In the present report it is hypothesized, that due to their large sizes, the lipoproteins of the severely hypertriglyceridemic diabetic rabbits are not able to penetrate the endothelial layer of the arteries. Therefore, the macrophages and smooth muscle cells of the intima will only come in contact with relatively small amounts of cholesterol-carrying lipoproteins. Consequently, cellular accumulation of cholesterol, which is a necessary step in the formation of an atherosclerotic lesion, will be retarded. There are certain parallels between hypertriglyceridemic cholesterol-fed alloxan-diabetic rabbits and humans with familial lipoprotein lipase deficiency, familial apolipoprotein C-II deficiency and insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus in the ketoacidotic state. Based on reports about patients with these metabolic disorders, we suggest that cholesterol in very large lipoproteins also in humans is less atherogenic than cholesterol in smaller lipoproteins.