DISTRIBUTION OF CII AND CIII PEPTIDES IN LIPOPROTEIN CLASSES - METHODS AND CLINICAL-SIGNIFICANCE

We describe a method for measuring apolipoprotein (ape) C distribution between ape B-containing lipoprotein (ape B-LP) and non-ape B-LP. The procedure requires the precipitation of apo B-LP, the redissolution o f the pellet, and the quantification of C peptides in the redissolved pellet. The ratio of ape C in non-apo B-LP to apo C in apo B-LP has be en calculated for both CII and CIII (R-CII and R-CIII, respectively). R-CII (0.49 +/- 0.25) and R-CIII (0.84 +/- 0.54) in patients on mainte nance dialysis are significantly lower than in the control group (1.14 +/- 0.57 and 1.45 +/- 0.92, respectively), indicating that hypertrigl yceridemia in these patients results from a reduced catabolism of trig lyceride-rich LP (TGRLP). Patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) show a distribution of C peptides no different from the control group. Analysis of covariance reveals that the patterns of R-CII and R-CIII are not entirely predictable from the serum concentration of triglycer ides. This result seems to support the hypothesis that the underlying metabolic defects involving TGRLP in dialysis patients are not the sam e as those in patients with CAD.