Have scientists just found a new miracle vaccine for cholesterol?
A new study has shown that a vaccine using the protein PCSK9 has shown efficacy in breaking down the receptors that cholesterol binds to when it is flushed from the body, and it has been shown to reduce cholesterol levels in mice and macaque monkeys, according to a UPI report.
Those who do not produce the protein PCSK9 have been shown to have a lower risk of heart disease, indicating that there is a reason why the vaccine appears to work. For mice, the vaccine was tested on its own, and it showed lowered levels of cholesterol in the blood. In macaque monkeys, the treatment was combined with statins, the typical drug used to treat heart disease and cholesterol, and it showed an even steeper drop in cholesterol.
Human tests will happen eventually, but for now additional tests will be scheduled for macaques.
The Food and Drug Administration recently approved two drugs — evolocumab and alirocumab — that target PCSK9, but the treatment has been restricted to patients who have a genetic form of high cholesterol that is hard to treat, and therefore it wasn’t available for those with more standard high cholesterol conditions.
In addition, they’re incredibly expensive, running anywhere from $7,000 to $12,000 annually per patient. This new vaccine could cost pennies on the dollar compared to those medications.
Dr. Alan Remaley, a researcher at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, said in a statement: “Statins are still the most commonly prescribed medication for cholesterol. Although they are effective in many people, do have side effects and don’t work for everyone. … The results of our vaccine were very striking, and suggest it could be a powerful new treatment for high cholesterol.”
The findings were published in the journal Vaccine.