Why bad cholesterol might be making your arteries angry
Oxidized Phospholipids on Lipoprotein(a) Elicit Arterial Wall Inflammation and an Inflammatory Monocyte Response in Humans
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
A type of fat in your blood called Lp(a) carries tiny toxic bits (OxPL) that make your immune cells stay angry for days, even after the danger is gone. These angry cells rush to your artery walls and cause swelling, which can lead to heart attacks.
No biological mechanisms were identified in this study. This may be an epidemiological, observational, or survey-based study that reports associations rather than proposing causal biological pathways.
Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
Max 100Randomized Controlled Trials
Max 90Cohort Studies
Max 72Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional Studies
Max 44Case Reports & Case Series
Max 30Expert Opinion & Narrative Reviews
Max 558 / 72
Evidence Score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
A type of fat in your blood called Lp(a) carries tiny toxic bits (OxPL) that make your immune cells stay angry for days, even after the danger is gone. These angry cells rush to your artery walls and cause swelling, which can lead to heart attacks.
No biological mechanisms were identified in this study. This may be an epidemiological, observational, or survey-based study that reports associations rather than proposing causal biological pathways.
Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
Max 100Randomized Controlled Trials
Max 90Cohort Studies
Max 72Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional Studies
Max 44Case Reports & Case Series
Max 30Expert Opinion & Narrative Reviews
Max 558 / 72
Evidence Score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Publication
Authors
van der Valk FM, Bekkering S, Kroon J, Yeang C, Van den Bossche J, van Buul JD, Ravandi A, Nederveen AJ, Verberne HJ, Scipione C, Nieuwdorp M, Joosten LA, Netea MG, Koschinsky ML, Witztum JL, Tsimikas S, Riksen NP, Stroes ES
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Claims (6)
When a specific type of fatty molecule called OxPL sticks to a protein in your blood called Lp(a), it tricks your immune cells into staying on high alert for a long time, causing inflammation—but if you block that sticky part or change the protein so it can’t hold onto OxPL, the inflammation stops.
People with high levels of a specific fat called lipoprotein(a) have more white blood cells rushing into their artery walls—even if they don’t have visible plaque buildup—making their arteries more prone to inflammation and damage.
People with high levels of a specific fat called Lp(a) in their blood tend to have more inflammation in their artery walls—even if they don’t have plaque buildup—which might mean Lp(a) itself is causing the inflammation.
People with high levels of a fatty substance called lipoprotein(a) have immune cells called monocytes that stay 'on high alert' for days—even after the inflammation is gone—making them overreact and cause more swelling and damage in blood vessels.
People with high levels of a specific blood protein called Lp(a) have way more harmful, oxidized fat molecules stuck to it—about 20 times more—than people with normal levels, and these fats are linked to heart disease.