Potential Drug to Prevent Atherosclerosis Identified

Hiroshi Okamoto of the Central Pharmaceutical Research Institute, JT Inc, Takasuki, Osaka, Japan, and colleagues have identified what could be a potent drug to prevent atherosclerosis. As they explain in this week's Nature (Vol. 406, Issue 6792, July 13, 2000), the compound, catchily named 'JTT-705', inhibits the protein 'CEPT'. The role of CEPT has been hitherto unclear, but the researchers show that, by influencing the lipid make-up of blood, it may contribute to the narrowing and hardening of blood vessels that constitutes atherosclerosis.

In cholesterol-fed rabbits, they report that JTT-705 brings about beneficial changes in blood HDL-C and LDL-C - sometimes called 'good cholesterol' and 'bad cholesterol', respectively - that "may be reasonably extrapolated to predict the changes in plasma lipids in humans treated with this drug," Okamoto's group speculates.

CONTACT:

Hiroshi Okamoto tel +81 726 81 9700, fax +81 726 81 9722,
e-mail ye6h-okmt@asahi-net.or.jp

(C) Nature press release.

Message posted by: Trevor M. D'Souza