ACCELERATED CHOLESTERYL ESTER TRANSFER IN PATIENTS WITH ESSENTIAL-HYPERTENSION AND THE EFFECT OF RAMIPRIL TREATMENT

Although the transfer of cholesteryl ester (CE) from high-density lipo protein (HDL) to the apolipoprotein B-containing lipoproteins (very-lo w-density lipoproteins + low-density lipoproteins) has been shown to b e abnormally increased in a number of conditions associated with incre ased cardiovascular risk, it has not been studied in patients with ess ential hypertension (EH). To determine whether subjects with EH have i ncreased CE transport, CE transfer (CET) was estimated isotopically an d lipoprotein lipid and phospholipid composition determined in a group of 14 untreated normolipidemic (triglycerides 116 +/- 46, cholesterol 185 +/- 30, HDL 38 +/- 10 mg/dl) otherwise healthy ethnically diverse EH subjects. CET was significantly increased in EH subjects compared to a similar group of normotensive controls (EH: k = 0.27 +/- 0.09 vs. control k = 0.11 +/- 0.02; P < 0.01). Lipoprotein concentration and c omposition were comparable in the two groups and closely resembled tha t of an age- and sex-matched reference group. The abnormal increase in CET persisted (k = 0.25 +/- 0.12) after 3 months of treatment with th e angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor ramipril without a cha nge in either plasma or lipoprotein lipids. Thus, CET is increased in normolipidemic subjects with EH and is not affected by the ACE inhibit or ramipril, (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserve d.