Jornal SBC 145 · Agosto · 2014
28
English Corner
Statins
are
the
main
achievement in cholesterol
reduction. Their regular use
leads to improvement of
cardiovascular risk resulting
in cardiovascular and total
mortality decrease. However,
some patients do not tolerate
them and others do not attain
the recommended LDL-
cholesterol target despite
their use at high doses. So,
the development of new
medications to be used in
these cases is very much awaited. In this context,
PCSK9 inhibitors are the most promising ones.
Studies have shown that this protease links to
LDL receptors leading to their destruction in cells
lysosomes. The suggestion that PCSK9 could
be seen as a therapeutic target began with the
description of gene polymorphisms leading to
over- and underexpression of this protease. In the
first case, subjects showed high cholesterol levels
and increase of cardiovascular risk, while in the
second situation cholesterol levels were low and
cardiovascular risk decreased. The description
of PCSK9 and the start of clinical trials using its
Ricky Silveira Mello
Professor de inglês
especializado em
Cardiologia
rickysilveiramello@gmail.
com
inhibitors is an example of how fast pharmacology
is working to develop new drugs – less than ten
years have passed. Initial trials have shown that
monoclonal antibodies designed to decrease
PCSK9 activity are capable of improving LDL-
cholesterol levels in many different situations:
familial hypercholesterolemia, with or without
other medications such as statins and ezetimibe,
in statin-intolerant patients, and so on. Now,
event-driven clinical trials are being developed,
aiming to demonstrate that this kind of treatment
is capable of reducing cardiovascular risk.
Ricky asksMarceloBertolami:
Cholesterol reduction: what is in the horizon?
Marcelo Chiara Bertolami
Director of Scientific Division – Dante Pazzanese Institute of Cardiology
Foto: Personal files/ Marcelo Chiara Bertolami
Para anunciar, entre em contato:
(11) 3411-5525
Anuncie no Jornal SBC
Publicação com notícias e novidades da Sociedade Brasileira de Cardiologia
Apareça
para a
Sociedade
