Department of Chemistry, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208, USA.
Trends Mol Med. 2010 Dec;16(12):553-60. doi: 10.1016/j.molmed.2010.10.006. Epub 2010 Nov 17.
Atherosclerosis is the disease mechanism responsible for coronary heart disease (CHD), the leading cause of death worldwide. One strategy to combat atherosclerosis is to increase the amount of circulating high-density lipoproteins (HDL), which transport cholesterol from peripheral tissues to the liver for excretion. The process, known as reverse cholesterol transport, is thought to be one of the main reasons for the significant inverse correlation observed between HDL blood levels and the development of CHD. This article highlights the most common strategies for treating atherosclerosis using HDL. We further detail potential treatment opportunities that utilize nanotechnology to increase the amount of HDL in circulation. The synthesis of biomimetic HDL nanostructures that replicate the chemical and physical properties of natural HDL provides novel materials for investigating the structure-function relationships of HDL and for potential new therapeutics to combat CHD.
动脉粥样硬化是导致冠心病（CHD）的疾病机制，CHD 是全球范围内的主要致死原因。对抗动脉粥样硬化的一种策略是增加循环中高密度脂蛋白（HDL）的含量，HDL 将胆固醇从外周组织转运到肝脏进行排泄。这种被称为胆固醇逆转运的过程被认为是 HDL 血液水平与 CHD 发展之间呈显著负相关的主要原因之一。本文重点介绍了使用 HDL 治疗动脉粥样硬化的最常见策略。我们进一步详细介绍了利用纳米技术增加循环中 HDL 含量的潜在治疗机会。仿生 HDL 纳米结构的合成复制了天然 HDL 的化学和物理性质，为研究 HDL 的结构-功能关系以及对抗 CHD 的潜在新疗法提供了新的材料。
