Yonsei University Medical School Professor Lee Sang-hak’s research results
First proof with’human sample’ beyond animal research
Yonsei University Medical School Professor Sanghak Lee’s team (Photo = Severance)
[아시아경제 김지희 기자] Research shows that people with good HDL function, called good cholesterol, create new blood vessels well even if the coronary arteries, which are cardiovascular vessels, are completely blocked.
Yonsei University College of Medicine Professor Sanghak Lee’s team (cardiology, Lecturer Sunhwa Lee) published the findings in the international journal’Journal of the American Heart Association (IF 4.605)’,’Cholesterol Outflow and Collateral Circulation in Chronic Coronary Artery Occlusion: EFFECT-CIRC Study. It was published in early March under the theme of’.
Until now, HDL levels have been known as factors that determine future cardiovascular risk, such as myocardial infarction or heart attack. However, many years ago, focusing on foreign research, reports that ▲HDL levels ▲related genes ▲use of drugs that increase HDL levels were not significantly related to cardiovascular risk.
In recent studies, it is reported that the cardiovascular risk is lower if HDL is more active than the simple level, when the function of escaping cholesterol accumulated in blood vessel cells (cholesterol efflux ability) and the excretion of this escaping cholesterol out of the body (reverse cholesterol transport) are active.
Therefore, the research team investigated how HDL function is related to the degree of development of new blood vessels in patients with cardiovascular disease. Among the patients who visited Yonsei University Severance Hospital Cardiology, 226 patients whose coronary arteries were chronically obstructed were measured for the HDL function’cholesterol outflow ability’ and analyzed whether this function is related to the degree of new blood vessel development.
The difference in HDL function was compared by dividing the patient group with well-developed new blood vessels and the patient group with no or poorly produced new blood vessels. In addition, statistically, even if other clinical characteristics were corrected, the relationship was maintained, and whether there were other factors affecting the formation of new blood vessels were also confirmed.
As a result, the patient group with good new angiogenesis had an HDL function level of cholesterol efflux at 22%, which was higher than that of the control group (20.2%). In the analysis correcting the confounding variable, the younger the age and the better HDL function, the better the formation of new blood vessels. In the analysis using the standard deviation, when the cholesterol outflow ability was 1-standard deviation high, the formation of new blood vessels was 51% better.
Professor Sang-hak Lee said, “The good new blood vessels in patients with active HDL function suggests that HDL can promote new blood vessel formation and consequently contribute to cardiovascular protection.” It has been confirmed that it can affect the health condition through the study, and it is particularly meaningful in that it has been proved in human samples for the first time beyond cell and animal studies.”
Reporter Kim Ji-hee [email protected]