Abstract
Clinical interventions that accelerate conversion of cholesterol to bile acids reduce circulating low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol concentrations. The initial and rate-limiting step in the bile acid biosynthetic pathway is catalyzed by hepatic cholesterol 7α-hydroxylase. To examine the effects of transient primary overexpression of this enzyme on sterol metabolism and lipoprotein transport, we constructed a recombinant adenovirus in which a cDNA encoding rat 7α-hydroxylase is expressed from the human cytomegalovirus immediate-early promoter (AdCMVTα). Syrian hamsters administered AdCMVTα intravenously accumulated transgene-specific mRNA in the liver and demonstrated a dose-dependent increase in hepatic microsomal 7α-hydroxylase activity. The increased conversion of cholesterol to bile acids resulted in a compensatory increase in hepatic cholesterol synthesis. In addition, overexpression of 7α-hydroxylase reduced the rate of LDL cholesterol entry into the plasma space and, in animals maintained on a Western-type diet, restored hepatic LDL receptor expression. As a consequence, plasma LDL concentrations fell by -60% in animals maintained on control diet and by -75% in animals consuming a Western-type diet. Plasma high density lipoprotein cholesterol levels were reduced to a lesser degree. These results demonstrate that transient upregulation of bile acid synthesis by direct transfer of a 7α-hydroxylase gene favorably alters circulating lipoprotein profiles and suggest one potential molecular target for genetic strategies aimed at reducing cardiovascular risk.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 700-709 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Journal | Journal of Clinical Investigation |
Volume | 96 |
Issue number | 2 |
State | Published - Aug 1995 |
Keywords
- Bile acids
- Cholesterol
- Genes
- Lipoprotein
- Viruses
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Medicine