Cholesterol esterification in mouse peritoneal macrophages in the presence of pathological human plasma lipoproteins.

Mouse peritoneal macrophages were incubated with abnormal lipoproteins (LP-X, HDL-E, VLDL-p, IDl-p and LDL-p) from a patient with secondary deficiency in phosphatidylcholine-sterol acyltransferase, or with phosphatidylcholine/cholesterol liposomes, and the stimulation of cholesteryl ester formation was studied. Acetylated low density lipoproteins served as a control. It was found that macrophages incubated with LP-X, the other pathological lipoproteins or with liposomes did not show an enhanced cholesterol esterification. Also HDL-E had no effect despite of its high apoE content and the fact that apoE has been postulated to be the agonist in beta-VLDL binding to macrophages.