cholesterol tagged posts

Beneficial gut microbes and the body work together to fine-tune fat metabolism and cholesterol levels, according to a new preclinical study by investigators from Weill Cornell Medicine and the Boyce Thompson Institute at Cornell University’s Ithaca campus.

The research is published in the journal Nature.

The human body has co-evolved with the beneficial microbes that live in the gut (termed the microbiota), resulting in mutually favorable relationships that aid in the d...

Excess cholesterol is known to form artery-clogging plaques that can lead to stroke, arterial disease, heart attack, and more, making it the focus of many heart health campaigns. Fortunately, this attention to cholesterol has prompted the development of cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins and lifestyle interventions like dietary and exercise regimens. But what if there’s more to the picture than just cholesterol?

New research from Salk Institute scientists describes how another class of lipids, called sphingolipids, contributes to arterial plaques and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD)...

People looking to reduce their cholesterol and trim fat from around their waist could try swapping meat for Quorn protein, according to the findings from a new study by Northumbria University, Newcastle, published in the European Journal of Nutrition, which saw positive effects in both areas in just two weeks.

Researchers from the University found that participants who ate Quorn products — the popular mycoprotein-based meat substitute — over just a two-week period, saw a significant 12% drop in ‘bad’ LDL cholesterol and a 7% fall in total cholesterol, compared to those who ate similar products made from red and processed meat. In addition, they also reduced their waist circumference by close to 1cm (0.95cm) on average over the 14 days.

Such a drop in total cholesterol levels cou...

Cholesterol manufactured in the brain appears to play a key role in the development of Alzheimer’s disease, new research indicates.

Scientists from the University of Virginia School of Medicine and their collaborators found that cholesterol produced by astrocytes is required for controlling the production of amyloid beta, a sticky protein that builds up in the brains of patients with Alzheimer’s. The protein accumulates into insoluble plaques that are a hallmark of the disease. Many efforts have targeted these plaques in the hope that removing or preventing them could treat or prevent Alzheimer’s.

The new findings offer important insights into how and why the plaques for...