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Basil M. Rifkind, MD; Claude Lenfant, MD

JAMA. 1986;256(20):2872-2873.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

Cholesterol is an essential yet potentially dangerous molecule. As recently described by Brown and Goldstein¹ in their Nobel Laureate lecture, the very property of cholesterol that makes it essential in cell membranes, namely, its absolute insolubility in water, also makes it potentially lethal. When it accumulates in the arterial wall it cannot be readily mobilized, and its presence eventually leads to the development of an atherosclerotic plaque and its sequelae. Brown and Goldstein also described the potential for errant cholesterol deposition to be aggravated by its dangerous tendency to exchange passively between blood lipoproteins and cell membranes. To transport cholesterol safely in the blood, its concentration must be kept sufficiently low and its tendency to escape from the bloodstream must be controlled.

The serious consequences of high cholesterol concentrations are readily apparent in familial hypercholesterolemia (FHC). Fortunately, its homozygous form is rare: one in 1 million in the population. . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

Author Affiliations
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Bethesda, Md

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