Compounds in a fermented fish paste used as a condiment in Indonesia efficiently inhibit an enzyme involved in cholesterol synthesis, reports a study published in the Pertanika journal Tropical Agricultural Science.
A certain immune reaction is the key, not to slowing atherosclerosis like cholesterol-lowering drugs do, but instead to reversing a disease that gradually blocks arteries to cause heart attacks and strokes. This is the finding of a study in mice led by researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center.
A vaccine to immunise people against high levels of cholesterol and the narrowing of the arteries caused by build-up of fatty material (atherosclerosis) may be possible following successful results in mice. Now, a phase I trial in patients has started to see if the findings translate to humans.
