Unesterified cholesterol-rich lipid particles in atherosclerotic lesions of human and rabbit aortas.

Unesterified cholesterol-rich lipid particles were isolated from human and cholesterol-fed rabbit aortas. These particles have been previously reported to constitute the initial lipid deposition in atherosclerotic lesion development. Purification of the particles was accomplished with microfiltration, gel filtration chromatography, and density gradient centrifugation. Particles from both human and rabbit aortas had a density of between 1.02 g/ml and 1.08 g/ml with a peak at d = 1.036 g/ml. These particles had a high molar ratio of unesterified cholesterol to phospholipid (2.4:1 in rabbit, 2.6:1 in human) and a high percentage of their cholesterol in an unesterified form (82% in rabbit, 76% in human). The particles had diameters between 700 and 3000 A and showed unilamellar and multilamellar structures. Freeze-fractured particles had smooth fracture faces and sometimes contained a smooth-surfaced core. Upon incubation with filipin, particles showed typical filipin-sterol complexes, demonstrating the presence of unesterified cholesterol. The particles we have isolated may constitute an early pathologic form of accumulated cholesterol in developing lesions and may represent a degradation product of infiltrated plasma low-density lipoprotein.