Abstract |
Cholesterol-fed rabbits develop a marked in crease in plasma cholesterol levels. Most of the excess plasma cholesterol is contained in beta-migrating very low density lipoprotein ( beta-VLDL), a cholesterol-rich particle that contains apoproteins B and E. When 125I-labeled beta-VLDL from cholesterol-fed rabbits was injected intravenously into normal rabbits, the lipoprotein was cleared rapidly from plasma, 80% of the radioactivity appearing in the liver within 4 min. In vitro binding assays showed that this uptake was due to the presence on liver membranes of a high-affinity, low-capacity binding site that resembles the low density lipoprotein receptor previously characterized on extrahepatic tissues. When the 125I-labeled beta-VLDL was injected into cholesterol-fed rabbits, hepatic uptake was reduced by more than 95% and the lipoprotein remained in the plasma. This defective uptake in cholesterol-fed rabbits was due to two factors: (i) saturation of the lipoprotein receptors by the high concentration of endogenous plasma beta-VLDL and (ii) a 60% reduction in the number of hepatic receptors after cholesterol feeding. Of the two factors, saturation of receptors was quantitatively more important. We suggest that, as a result of the saturation and suppression of receptors, the hepatic removal of beta-VLDL in the cholesterol-fed rabbit fails to increase commensurate with the diet-induced increase in beta-VLDL synthesis and profound hypercholesterolemia ensues.
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Authors | P T Kovanen, M S Brown, S K Basu, D W Bilheimer, J L Goldstein |
Journal | Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
(Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A)
Vol. 78
Issue 3
Pg. 1396-400
(Mar 1981)
ISSN: 0027-8424 [Print] United States |
PMID | 6262794
(Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.)
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Chemical References |
- Cholesterol, Dietary
- Lipoproteins, HDL
- Lipoproteins, VLDL
- Receptors, Cell Surface
- Receptors, Lipoprotein
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Topics |
- Adrenal Glands
(metabolism)
- Animals
- Cell Membrane
(metabolism)
- Cholesterol, Dietary
(pharmacology)
- Humans
- Hypercholesterolemia
(metabolism)
- Kinetics
- Lipoproteins, HDL
(metabolism)
- Lipoproteins, VLDL
(metabolism)
- Liver
(metabolism)
- Male
- Rabbits
- Receptors, Cell Surface
(drug effects, metabolism)
- Receptors, Lipoprotein
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